Current Affairs Current Affairs - 3 April 2016

General Affairs

Governor NN Vohra Invites Mehbooba Mufti To Form Government In Jammu And Kashmir

JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir Governor NN Vohra today invited PDP President Mehbooba Mufti to form the government in the state, who will become its first woman chief minister.

"Governor NN Vohra today invited President of the People's Democratic Party Mehbooba Mufti to form and lead the PDP-BJP coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir", the Raj Bhawan spokesman said.

He said the Governor's invitation to Ms Mufti follows the earlier discussions with the PDP and BJP chiefs regarding the formation of the new government and the subsequent communications received from both the parties, including state chief of BJP Sat Sharma.

"The oath-taking ceremony is scheduled to be held on Monday, April 4 at the Raj Bhawan in Jammu", the spokesman said.

The BJP had yesterday sent its letter of support for the Mehbooba Mufti-led government in Jammu and Kashmir to the Governor.

"Today our party has sent a letter to the Governor stating that from our side we are ready to form the government whenever the PDP leadership decides to move ahead and we are ready to join them", BJP national General Secretary Ram Madhav had said.

Central Committee To Visit Maharashtra's Latur District Over Water Crisis

NEW DELHI: A central fact-finding committee will visit the district to study the severe water crisis in Maharashtra's Latur and find ways to tackle the problem.

"We are daily hearing about the tense situation in Latur. I have asked our Secretary to get a fact-finding report from there," Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti today said.

"Be it the issue related to drinking water (which is a state subject), it is possible the reservoirs providing drinking water there come under our purview and we can intervene and figure out a solution," Ms Bharti said.

The Central Water Commission Committee is likely to visit the district next week, she said while briefing media persons in Delhi about the upcoming 'India Water Week'.

She said the government is "prepared to face drought" situation and added it is focusing on completing irrigation projects in a time-bound manner to address water issues.

The intervention by the ministry comes in wake of the Railway Ministry's decision to transport water to the drought-affected district during summer.

According to the decision, two goods trains will be deployed to transport water to Latur and the trips of the trains will be arranged as per requirement.

In view of possibility of violence given the water crisis, local authorities have banned groups of people from gathering near water sources.

Not more than five people are allowed at wells and public storage tanks for the next two months. Water tankers go there once a week and locals receive tap water just once a month.

Latur, about 500 kilometres east of Mumbai, is part of Maharashtra's drought ravaged Marathwada region and its half-a-million residents are reeling from years of below-par monsoon rains.

PM Modi's Saudi Agenda Big On Oil And Indian Workers

Riyadh: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived Saturday in Saudi Arabia where he will discuss energy, security, and trade cooperation with leaders of the world's largest crude exporter.

India, which imports around 80 percent of its oil needs, is keen to take advantage of low crude prices by signing overseas deals that will help secure supplies to meet its growing demand.

"Almost 20 percent of our crude supplies come from Saudi Arabia," Indian foreign ministry official Shri Mridul Kumar said ahead of the visit.

"We have to make sure that this supply continues. And this is one of the key agenda points that Prime Minister will be discussing with King Salman," he added.

The Saudi Press Agency reported PM Modi's arrival but gave no immediate details on the visit.

Mr Kumar said Modi was also expected to discuss means "to ensure the well being" of 2.96 million Indian expatriates in Saudi Arabia who send over $10 billion in remittances every year.

"This very important visit will allow discussions on all issues of bilateral importance, regional and multilateral importance," he said.
Indian officials will discuss the Muslim hajj to ensure that it will take place smoothly, particularly after a stampede at the annual pilgrimage in September killed more than 2,000 pilgrims, including 116 Indians.

Muslim pilgrims have blamed the stampede on police road closures and poor Saudi management of the flow of hundreds of thousands of people, who found escape routes blocked when the crush occurred.

Security cooperation is also expected to be on the agenda of the talks, Kumar said.

Saudi Arabia and the US Treasury this week announced that they had jointly imposed sanctions on four individuals and two organisations with alleged links to Al-Qaeda, Taliban, and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) -- which India blames for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.

Among those sanctioned was Saudi-based Muhammad Ijaz Safarash, who allegedly provided financial, material, or technological support for the Pakistan-based militant group LeT.

Modi will also meet Sunday with Saudi business leader to discuss boosting bilateral investment.

"Saudi Arabia is our fourth largest trading partner" with exports to the kingdom exceeding $11 billion, said Kumar.

I Am A Polluter As Well As A Pollution Container, Says Minister Piyush Goyal

MUMBAI: "I am a polluter as well as a pollution container", Union minister Piyush Goyal today said, describing how his two portfolios had put him in an "awkward" situation.

Mr Goyal, who is the Power and Coal minister as well as that of and New and Renewable Energy, said this in a lighter vein at a symposium "Conference of Parties (COP 21)-Building Synergies, Shaping Actions" organised at the University of Mumbai.

Noting that his twin portfolios put him in an "awkward" situation, he said, "I am a polluter as well as a pollution container," according to an official statement.

Mr Goyal said India has launched the world's largest renewable energy programme by scaling up the target for solar energy.

"The solar energy mission envisaged 20,000 MW of solar electricity generation by 2022. But this target has been pushed ahead by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to 1,00,000 MW (1Gw)," he said.

The agreement, negotiated in Paris in December 2015, sets out a global action plan to put the world on track by limiting global warming below 2 degree Celsius.

India, in its climate action plan, has announced that it aims at achieving around 40 per cent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030.

Mr Goyal said his Ministry has already bid out 19,000 MW of solar energy projects and the installed capacity of 20,000 MW would be achieved as early as 2017.

He, however, cautioned that all renewable energy programmes will be sustainable only if they become "economically viable".

The Minister said coal, which is available in abundance in India, has its own place in ensuring cheaper energy.

"While one is aware of pollution caused by the thermal power plants, their importance cannot be overlooked. Therefore, our thrust is on adopting clean coal technologies," he said.

Mr Goyal, however, lamented lack of commitment of the developed world in fulfilling their obligations.

He asserted that "India's green energy programmes will be carried out whether we receive support of the western world or not."

Election Commission Asks For Spring Cleaning Of Electoral Rolls

AGARTALA: The Election Commission has asked all the states and union territories, except five election-bound states, to launch a fresh drive to correct and update the electoral rolls, an official in Agartala said on Saturday.

"The actual work of purification of the electoral rolls under the programme 'National Electoral Roll Purification and Authentication Programme (NERPAP)' has started on Friday and it would continue till August," Additional Chief Electoral Officer of Tripura Debashish Modak told IANS.

He said: "NERPAP was conducted in previous year also and was effective. It will be implemented in various phases."

The five-month programme would be completed before the publication of the next draft electoral rolls of each state, he said.

The next draft electoral rolls would be published for the subsequent summary revision of voters' list qualifying the age as on January 1, 2017, he said.

"All eligible voters with a special focus on 18 years' age group are to be included in the electoral list and multiple registrations of a single person cleansed, while also taking care of the dead, shifted and absent voters," he said.

"Sometimes after the shifting of a person or a family from one place to another place and other reasons, their names occur in two or more lists. Under NERPAP, names and other details of the voters would be verified and recorded," Mr Modak said.

The election-bound states of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry have been kept outside the programme, possibly to avoid any difficulties in the on-going electoral process.

The Election Commission is also collecting the voter's mobile number with their photo identity card number to provide electoral roll related information to the voters.
on has asked all the states and union territories, except five election-bound states, to launch a fresh drive to correct and update the electoral rolls, an official in Agartala said on Saturday.

"The actual work of purification of the electoral rolls under the programme 'National Electoral Roll Purification and Authentication Programme (NERPAP)' has started on Friday and it would continue till August," Additional Chief Electoral Officer of Tripura Debashish Modak told IANS.

He said: "NERPAP was conducted in previous year also and was effective. It will be implemented in various phases."

The five-month programme would be completed before the publication of the next draft electoral rolls of each state, he said.

The next draft electoral rolls would be published for the subsequent summary revision of voters' list qualifying the age as on January 1, 2017, he said.

"All eligible voters with a special focus on 18 years' age group are to be included in the electoral list and multiple registrations of a single person cleansed, while also taking care of the dead, shifted and absent voters," he said.

"Sometimes after the shifting of a person or a family from one place to another place and other reasons, their names occur in two or more lists. Under NERPAP, names and other details of the voters would be verified and recorded," Mr Modak said.

The election-bound states of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry have been kept outside the programme, possibly to avoid any difficulties in the on-going electoral process.

The Election Commission is also collecting the voter's mobile number with their photo identity card number to provide electoral roll related information to the voters.

Business Affairs

Bank unions threaten nationwide strike on May 25

Bank unions have given another call for a nationwide strike on May 25 to protest against their long-held grouses of privatisation and reforms in the banking sector among other issues.

The All-India Banks Employees Association (AIBEA) has called for the day-long strike against the government's plans to privatise public banks and other reforms in the sector, including merger of smaller lenders.

Earlier this week, a section of employees and officers of IDBI Bank was on strike on multiple days to protest the Government's proposal to pare its stake in the lender to below 51 per cent.

"We will go on strike on May 25 in support of various demand, including make banking a fundamental right, strengthening public sector banks, against privatisation of public sector banks, adequate capital infusion in PSBs and stringent measures to recover bad loans," said AIBEA General Secretary C H Venkatchalam said.

The employees will also demand to declare wilful default of bank loan as criminal offence, publish list of wilful defaulters and a Parliamentary probe into the Vijay Mallya case, he said.

"More than the ownership issue, the top-most issue today is the alarming increase in bad loans in the banks which is threatening to topple the entire banking sector."

The union claims it has over 5 lakh bank employees as its members.

Auto Sales remain a mixed bag amid sluggish demand in fiscal year 2016

The just concluded March ended fiscal was not the best year for auto sales amid sluggish demand, but market leaders and some other companies managed to pull it off to an all-time best performance with Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai leading the pack.

Maruti Suzuki India, the leader in passenger vehicles, ended 2015/16 with its highest ever sales of 1,429,248 units, a growth of 10.6 per cent. This comprises highest ever domestic sales of 1,305,351 units and 123,897 units of exports.

The splendid performance was largely helped by consistent top performance of its top four best-selling models Alto, Dzire, Swift and WagonR that are also the leaders in the Indian car market. It sold 129,345 units in March 2016, a growth of 16 per cent over last year . This includes 118,895 units in the domestic market and 10,450 units exported last month.

South Korean carmaker, Hyundai Motor India, the country's largest passenger car exporter also achieved its highest-ever domestic sales of 484,324 units compared to 420,668 units in 2014/15. Hyundai sales grew 15 per cent over previous fiscal year.

Commenting on the March sales, Rakesh Srivastava, Senior Vice President for Sales and Marketing at Hyundai Motor said, "W have posted an all-time highest volume of 484,324 units along with highest-ever market share of over 17 per cent on the strong performance of models like Creta, Elite i20 and Grand i10. We have some exciting plans to bring about some innovative products like SUVs and hatchbacks under the vision of Experience Hyundai in India."

Car companies have been facing sluggish demand and sales of many players have declined in the past few months. The imposition of fresh cess and taxes in the range of 1-4 per cent in the annual budget is likely to further impact demand in the 12-month new fiscal starting from April. Car prices have been raised by Rs 2,500 to up to Rs 5 lakh for the luxury models that is expected to damper customer sentiments.

Many companies like Volkswagen, Nissan, Fiat and Skoda have not performed well and have been the main victims of sluggish demand. All these companies did not share their fiscal sales performance or data.

For many others, the sales were not so sizzling. For Mahindra & Mahindra, India's leading SUV manufacturer, passenger vehicles sales (which includes UVs, cars and vans) rose 6 per cent to 236,307 units in FY16 as against 223,968 units sold in the previous fiscal.

Speaking on the auto sales performance Pravin Shah, the President & Chief Executive (Automotive) said, "We managed to achieve an overall 6 per cent increase during for FY2016, despite various challenges. The market was tough and diesel sales were restricted in the Delhi-NCR. The last financial year was significant for us helped by new product launches, leading to a positive growth both in domestic and overseas markets. Going forward the likely softening of interest rates in the upcoming RBI monetary policy, will help the automotive industry to maintain its growth momentum in FY 2017."

Japanese car maker Honda Cars India posted its fourth consecutive year of sales growth with sales of 192,059 units during FY 2016, a 2 per cent growth over the previous financial year. The company had sold 189,062 units during FY'15. Its monthly domestic sales stood at of 17,430 units in March 2016, as compared to 22,696 units in the corresponding month last year.

French carmaker Renault India sold 12,424 units in March 2016 as against 4,782 units in the corresponding month last year. The company did not release its data for the fiscal. It three-month quarterly sales for January-March period grew 157 per cent to 29,289 units during January - March 2016 as against 11,404 units sold during the same period last year.

Hero MotoCorp Ltd (HMCL), the world's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, remained flat on fiscal sales. The company sold 6,632,322 units of two-wheelers during FY16 from 6,631,826 units sold in the previous fiscal FY15. Sustaining its strong sales performance over the past two quarters, HMCL sold 606,542 units in the month of March, registering a 14 per cent growth over the corresponding month last year when the company had sold 531,750 units.

Government tweaks gold monetisation scheme, makes more attractive for temples

To make the gold monetisation scheme more attractive, the government has allowed investors to redeem the deposits in gold also.

The move is expected to attract temple trusts, many of which have significant amount of gold under their control.

"Now, for the gold deposited under Medium and Long Term Government Deposits (MLTGD), the redemption of principal at maturity shall, at the option of the depositor, be either in Indian Rupee equivalent of the value of deposited gold at the time of redemption or in gold," the Finance Ministry said in a release today.

For redemption of the deposit in gold, an administrative charge of "0.2 per cent" of the notional redemption amount would be levied from the depositor in Indian rupees.

"It is expected that the above modification will make the scheme more attractive for potential depositors," the release said.

The interest accrued on the scheme would be calculated with reference to the value of gold in terms of Indian rupee at the time of deposit and would be paid only in cash.

Earlier also, a number of modifications have been made to the scheme to facilitate monetisation of gold by people.

The scheme was launched in November last year to curb imports of gold, which has a bearing on Current Account Deficit.

Medium Term Government Deposit (MTGD) can be made for 5-7 years and Long Term Government Deposit (LTGD) for 12-15 years.

For Short Term Bank Deposit (STBD) the redemption in gold was already permitted.

Under the scheme, banks are authorised to collect gold for up to 15 years to auction them off or lend to jewellers from time to time. Depositors will earn up to 2.50 per cent interest per annum, a rate lower than bank deposits.

India imports about 1,000 tonnes of gold every year and the precious metal is the second highest component of the imports bill after crude oil. An estimated 20,000 tonnes of gold are lying with households and temples.

Fitch downgrades Tata Steel group, puts it on rating watch

Even as two of its rivals reacted positively to Tata Steel's plans to sell British operations, Fitch Ratings on Friday downgraded the company and long-term foreign currency issuer default rating to 'BB' from 'BB+/stable' and placed it on rating watch evolving.

The downgrade is on Tata Steel and also Tata Steel UK, the rating agency said in a late evening note.

Fitch also downgraded unsecured notes issued by the domestic steel major to 'BB' from 'BB+' and placed them on the rating watch. It also downgraded the long-term foreign currency of Tata Steel UK Holdings to 'B' from 'B+/Stable' and placed it on rating watch list.

Fitch's rivals Moody's and S&P had positively commented on the Tatas plan to exit loss-making UK operations.

"The downgrade reflects the decline in the company's profitability and jump in leverage during FY16, following challenging market conditions for its operations in India and overseas, especially in Britain.

"The downgrade of British operations reflects the downgrade of parent and the weak operating environment there and more broadly across Europe," Fitch said.

The rating watch reflects uncertainty following the company's announcement on March 29 to revamp operations in Europe, including potential sale of its British operations, in part or in whole.

"Considerable uncertainty remains on timing and how the Group and its debt will be structured going forward. We believe sale of British operations will result in a change to the Group's ratings," Fitch said.

Explaining the rationale for its actions, Fitch said the company's domestic profitability is weak. Consolidated EBITDA per tonne declined to about Rs 7,400/tonne in the first nine months of FY16 from Rs 11,400/t in FY15.

Domestic steel demand has been tepid at 4.7 per cent in the said period which was met largely by a 29 per cent increase in imports. Though 20 per cent safeguard duty on steel imports has been of some help, prices are still about 20 per cent lower than the average for FY15.

Similarly, its European operations are under stress with EBITDA losses in Q2 and Q3 of FY16, hit by weak show in UK. Price realisation in Europe has faced pressure from cheap Chinese and Russian imports amid weak demand.

On top of it the company has seen a major jump in leverage. Fitch estimates the company's consolidated net debt to EBITDA leverage will jump to 11.6 times in FY16, from 5.8 times in the previous year, due to poor profitability.

The company, however, will benefit from the commissioning of the first phase of its greenfield plant at Kalinganagar in Odisha having a capacity of 3 million tonne.

The rating outfit sees its sales volume dipping 8 per cent in FY17 due to lower steel production in UK.

HCL Tech to acquire business of Geometric in equity swap deal

IT company HCL Technologies on Friday said it has signed an agreement to acquire all the business of Geometric Limited in an equity swap deal.

The acquisition, however, excludes the 58 per cent stake that Geometric owns in a joint venture -- 3DPLM Software Solutions Ltd -- with Dassault Systemes.

HCL will issue 10 equity shares of Rs 2 each to Geometric shareholders for every 43 equity shares of Geometric of Rs 2 each held by them, the company said in a statement.

In total, HCL will issue 15,640,546 equity shares of Rs 2 each.

Mumbai-based Geometric is a product life cycle management consulting, mechanical engineering and manufacturing engineering services providers.

Shares of Geometric settled at Rs 196, while HCL ended at Rs 820.70 apiece on BSE today.

"With broad end-to-end capabilities and rich experience across PLM consulting, mechanical and manufacturing engineering that Geometric brings in, the synergies allow us to take advantage of the rapidly growing manufacturing engineering and PLM services market," HCL Technologies President for Engineering and R&D Services GH Rao said.

The acquisition strengthens HCL's presence significantly in the PLM consulting as well as mechanical and manufacturing engineering space. It also significantly strengthens HCL's automotive and industrial practices.

The business, that HCL is acquiring, is one of the largest acquisitions in the engineering services space, the statement said, adding that Geometric has more than 60 global clients in the US and Europe, majorly in automotive and industrial engineering segments.

As of December 2015, Geometric employed 2,606 people across 13 global delivery locations in the US, France, Germany, Romania, India and China.

Geometric was incorporated in 1994 and is listed on the BSE and the National Stock Exchange.

For the fiscal years ended March 2014 & March 2015, the revenues of Geometric were Rs 787.12 crore and Rs 813.93 crore respectively.

JM Financial advised Geometric on the deal.

HCL will inherit several Geometric processes, methodologies and intellectual properties in PLM and digital manufacturing, along with highly specialised professionals in the PLM consulting as well as mechanical and manufacturing engineering space.

"The transaction thus creates a unique portfolio of end-to-end engineering and R&D capabilities across the full product lifecycle - hardware, software, mechanical and manufacturing engineering and PLM consulting," the statement said.

"Our customers will have access to a wide range of engineering services which complement Geometric's offerings.

Geometric's employees will have the opportunity for growth as they can serve HCL Tech's large customer base," Geometric CEO and MD Manu Parpia said.

Geometric in a separate statement said that Dassault Systemes will acquire 100 per cent stake of JV 3DPLM.

"In exchange for the ownership in Geometric Ltd shareholders of Geometric Ltd shall receive one listed redeemable preference share of Rs 68 each carrying dividend of 7 per cent per annum in 3DPLM against every one share of Geometric Ltd," the statement said.

In a separate statement, Dassault Syst mes Senior Executive Vice President, Research & Development Dominique Florack said, "The full integration of 3DPLM into Dassault Syst mes is the result of continuous investment and very successful partnership and also marks the strategic next phase in the contribution of 3DPLM in our strategic R and D operations."

General Awareness

Latest Current Affairs - March 2016

Appointments

Air Asia India appointed Amar Abrol as new CEO.

Ajit Singh was sworn in as Chief Justice (CJ) of the Gauhati High Court.

Ali Mohamed Shein won Presidential Elections of semi-autonomous region Zanzibar.

Anil Wadhwa appointed Ambassador of India to Republic of San Marino.

Anirudh Singh Yadav appointed as chairman of Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC).

Argentinian Football Player Lionel Messi has been named as global ambassador for Chinese tech company Huawei.

Bangladesh Government appointed Fazle Kabir as new Governor of Bangladesh's central bank.

Congo Republic President Denis Sassou Nguesso won re-election for president post.

Economist and former Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India, Rakesh Mohan joined Nestle India as an Independent Non-Executive Director.

Egyptian Ahmed Abul Gheit has been selected as Secretary General of Arab League. Arab League also declared Lebanese movement Hezbollah, a Shia political organisation as a terrorist group.

Faustin Archange Touadera took charge as new president of Central African Republic.

Government appointed Balbir Singh Chauhan as Chairman of 21st Law Commission of India (LCI).

HL Dattu is appointed as member of International Coordinating Committee Bureau (ICCB) of National Human Rights Institutions (NHRI-ICC) Bureau in Geneva (Switzerland).

Htin Kyaw is elected as first civilian (non-military) President of Myanmar after 53 years of military rule.

India-born academician Surya Deva appointed as United Nations (UN) Adviser on Human Rights and Businesses.

Indian Direct Selling Association (IDSA) announced Jitendra Jagota as new Chairman.

Indian Professor TV Paul took over as 56th president of International Studies Association (ISA).

Indian-American Nandita Bakshi is appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) ofBank of the West, a subsidiary of French banking giant BNP Paribas.

Indian-American investor Sunil Sabharwal took charge as Alternate Executive Director at International Monetary Fund (IMF).

It firm Wipro appointed Paypal Executive Patrick Dupuis as an Independent Director on Wipro's Board.

Jean Arnault (France) is appointed as head of United National Political Mission in Columbia.

Lori Robinson appointed as head of US military’s Northern Command amd became first woman to head a US combatant command.

Mehbooba Mufti will become the first woman Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

Mrugank Paranjape is appointed as managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX).

N P S Hira is appointed as Deputy Chief of Indian Army.

NALCO's Chief Tapan Kumar is appointed as chief of Aluminium Association of India.

Noted Indian scholar and plant physiologist H Deep Saini appointed as Vice Chancellor of University of Canberra, Australia.

Noted actress Kangana Ranaut is chosen as brand ambassador of Reebok India.

Noted fashion designer Ritu Beri is appointed as advisor to Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) for promotion of khadi in India and across world.

Permod Kohli is appointed as Chairman of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).

S Sridhar is appointed as managing director of Pfizer India.

Slovenian high-jumper Rozle Prezelj has been elected as chairman of International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) Athletes' Commission.

Sudhakar Rao will be new Chairman and Public Interest Director of BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange).

Sun Pharma appointed Cricketer MS Dhoni as Brand ambassador for its top selling health supplement Revital H.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) CEO Natarajan Chandrasekaran is appointed as non-official directors to board of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

USA President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland to be next US Supreme Court Justice.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) appointed Actress Michelle Yeoh as Goodwill Ambassador.

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) appointed Ashley Judd as its Goodwill Ambassador.

United Nations appointed Red, leader of Angry Birds mobile game characters as an envoy to inspire climate action.

Urban Development, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu has been conferred with Skoch Lifetime Achievement Award during 43rd SKOCH summit in New Delhi.

Vietnam's National Assembly elected Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan as country`s first female house speaker.

Awards

10th Asian film Awards (Macau, China)

The Assassin won 8 awards in different categories. It is a 2015 martial arts film based on story of highly trained female assassin and is directed by Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien.

Best Film: The Assassin.

Best Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien (The Assassin)

Best Actor: Lee Byung-hun (The Inside Men).

Best Actress: Shu Qi (The Assassin).

Best Supporting Actor: Tadanobu Asano (Journey to the Shore).

Best Supporting Actress: Zhou Yun (The Assassin).

2016 Hockey India Annual Awards -

Major Dhyan Chand Lifetime Achievement Award -Shankar Laxman

Dhruv Batra Player of Year - P.R Sreejesh (male), Deepika (female).

Baljit Singh Goalkeeper of Year - Savita. Pargat Singh

Defender - Kothajit Singh, Midfielder - Ritu Rani, Forward - Rani.

Upcoming Player - Harjeet Singh (male), Preeti Dubey (female)

President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement - Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy.

63rd National Film Awards for year 2015 -

Best feature film - Baahubali : The Beginning (directed by S. S. Rajamouli)

Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment - Bajrangi Bhaijaan

Best Actor - Amitabh Bachchan (Piku).

Best Actress - Kangana Ranaut (Tanu Weds Manu Returns).

Best Direction - Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Bajirao Mastani).

Best Film on Social Issues - Niranayakam (Malayalam)

Best Supporting Actor - Samuthirakani for Visaranai (Tamil).

Best Supporting Actress - Tanvi Azmi for Bajirao Mastani (Hindi).

Best Children’s Film - Duronto (Hindi)

Best Child Artist - Gaurav Menon for Ben (Malayalam).

Special Jury Award - Margarita with a Straw (Hindi) directed by Kalki Koechlin.

Best Cinematography - Remo D’Souza for Bajirao Mastani.

Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Director - Neeraj Ghaywan for Masaan (Hindi).

Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration - Nanak Shah Fakir (Punjabi)

Advertising Club Madras conferred its 1st Distinguished Service Award on Srinivasan K Swamy, CMD OF R K Swamy BBDO for contribution to advertising industry.

Amrita Patel conferred with prestigious 2016 Mahindra Samriddhi India Agri Lifetime Achievement Award also known as Krishi Shiromani Samman.

Aruna Gali won award for Laadli Media and Advertising Gender Sensitivity 2014-2015 for Her Telugu blog Vivakshaku Mugimpu Palakaali, selected under web category for bringing to fore core issues faced by women in agriculture sector.

British mathematician Andrew Wiles won prestigious 2016 Abel Prize. He was selected by Norwegian Academy of Sciences and Letters for solving a centuries old hypothesis (equation), Fermat’s Last Theorem.

Dogri poetess and writer Padma Sachdev is awarded by Krutitava Smagra Samman 2015.

Finance Minister Arun Jailey presented 5th National Photography Awards -

In addition to the Life Time Achievement Award, a total of 12 awards were presented.

Life Time Achievement - Bhawan Singh

Professional Photographer Award -Javed Ahmed Dar

Amateur Photographer - Himanshu Thakur

France awarded Legion d’Honneur, France’s highest honour to visiting Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Nayef.

India's Abdulqadir Rashik won first prize in UN #LinksSDGs Data Visualization Challenge. He is awarded for his submission Links to Sustainable Cities, an interactive visualization that identifies links between Sustainable Development Goal 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and other 16 Goals.

Indian Advertising Association (IAA) Awards 2016 -

Sanjay Gupta (Jagran Group CEO) - Editor of the Year

Brand Endorser - Varun Dhawan (Actor)

TV Anchor - Rajat Sharma (India TV)

Media Person - Raj Nayak (Colors)

CEO of the year - Kumar Mangalam Birla

Indian Geetakshi Arora has been awarded First Noor Inayat Khan Prize for her excellent dissertation on Goddess Myths in Graphic Novels: Reimagining Indian Feminity.

Indian author Jerry Pinto won 2016 Windham-Campbell Prize for his novel Em and The Big Hoomin fiction category at Yale University (USA).

Kerala Tourism's campaign New Worlds won Golden City Gate Award at Internationale Tourismus-Borse Berlin (ITB-Berlin) 2016.

Mahindra & Mahindra Group CMD Anand G Mahindra conferred with Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by France.

Media Foundation's Chameli Devi Jain award for 2015-16 has been jointly awarded to Priyanka Kakodkar and Raksha Kumar.

Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC) notified new environment standards for Gensets running on various kinds of fuels including LPG, petrol and diesel in various cities, aiming to control air and noise pollution emanating from Gensets.

Ministry of Women & Child Development gave Nari Shakti Puraskar 2015 to 15 women, 5 organisations, one state and panchayat on occasion of International Women's Day.

Haryana awarded for improving Child Sex Ratio (CSR) and Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) in 2015.

Anganwadipuram Gram Panchayat in Mallapuram of Kerala awarded for work for women empowerment.

Rani Lakshmibai Award (Nari Shakti Puraskar 2015) also given to Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) for its work under KIRAN-IPR for women empowerment in R&D through Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) training.

NTPC won Research Investor Communication Award among Large Corporates n an independent poll of over 3000 Fund Managers/Analysts/Non Institutional Investors.

Noted Actor Manoj Kumar selected for 47th Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2015.

Noted American singer Stevie Wonder honoured with Global Green Hero award at 13th Annual Global Green USA Pre Oscar party.

Noted Malayalam writer M Sukumaran has been chosen for CV Kunhiraman Literary Prize.

Noted playwright and director Ratan Thiyam has been selected for prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for 2016 at Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards (META).

Noted poet Bhagwati Lal Vyas has been selected for 2015 Bihari Puraskar for his anthology of Rajasthani poems Katha Sun Aawe Hai Sabad, published in 2010.

PM Narendra Modi conferred 2014-15 Krishi Karman Awards during Krishi Unnati Mela in Delhi -

Individual Crops -

Haryana, Assam - Rice

Rajasthan - Wheat

Chhattisgarh - Pulses

West Bengal - Oil Seeds

Total foodgrain production - 5 winning states were awarded in different categories. Each state was awarded a trophy, a citation and prize of 5 crore rupees. These states are -

Madhya Pradesh - For production greater than 10 million tonnes

Himachal Pradesh and Odisha - For production between 1 and 10 million tonnes

Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya - For production less than 1 million tonnes

Palestinian teacher Hanan Al Hroub has been awarded with one million dollar 2016 Global Teacher Prize for her outstanding contribution to the profession. Finalists also included India’s Robin Chaurasiya who runs a not-for-profit school in Mumbai for girls from.

Pranab Mukherjee conferred Padma Awards 2016. It Included Haldhar Nag, 66-year-old poet in Kosli language who was highlightened as he used to be a 3rd Class passout and now is acclaimed as among top Poets in Country with 5 Thesis written for him. Complete List of Padma Awardees is as given -

Padma Vibhushan -

Ms. Yamini Krishnamurthi — Art-Classical dance — Delhi

Rajinikanth — Art-Cinema — Tamil Nadu

Smt Girija Devi — Art-Classical Vocal — West Bengal

Ramoji Rao — Literature & Education-Journalism — Andhra Pradesh

Dr Viswanathan Shanta — Medicine-Oncology — Tamil Nadu

Ravi Shankar — Others-Spiritualism — Karnataka

Jagmohan — Public Affairs — Delhi

Dr Vasudev Kalkunte Aatre — Science & Engineering — Karnataka

Avinash Dixit(Foreigner) — Literature & Education — USA

Late Dhiru Bhai Ambani (Posthumous) — Trade & Industry — Maharashtra

Padma Bhushan

Anupam Kher — Art-Cinema — Maharashtra

Udit Narayan Jha — Art-Playback Singing — Maharashtra

Ram V Sutar — Art-Sculpture — Uttar Pradesh

Heisnam Kanhailal — Art-Theatre — Manipur

Vinod Rai — Civil Service — Kerala

Dr Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad — Literature & Education — Andhra Pradesh

Prof NS Ramanuja Tatacharya — Literature & Education — Maharashtra

Dr Barjinder Singh Hamdard — Literature & Education - Journalism — Punjab

Prof D Nageshwar Reddy — Medicine-Gastroenterology — Telangana

Swami Tejomayananda — Other-Spiritualism — Maharashtra

Hafeez Contractor — Others-Architecture — Maharashtra

Ravindra Chandra Bhargava — Public Affairs — Uttar Pradesh

Dr Venkata Rama Rao — Alla Science & Engineering — Andhra Pradesh

Ms Saina Nehwal — Sports-Badminton — Telangana

Ms Sania Mirza — Sports-Tennis — Telangana

Ms Indu Jain — Trade & Industry — Delhi

Late Swami Dayanand Sarawasati (Posthumous) — Others-Spiritualism — Uttarakhand

Robert Blackwill (Foreigner) — Public Affairs — USA

Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry (NRI/PIO) — Trade & Industry — Ireland

Padma Shri

Smt Prathibha Prahlad — Art- Classical Dance — Delhi

Bhikhudan Gadhvi — Art- Folk Music — Gujarat

Sribhas Chandra Supakar — Art- Textile Designing — Uttar Pradesh

Ajay Devgn — Art-Cinema — Maharashtra

Ms Priyanka Chopra — Art-Cinema — Maharashtra

Pt Tulsidas Borkar — Art-Classical Music — Goa

Dr Soma Ghosh — Art-Classical Vocal — Uttar Pradesh

Nila Madhab Panda — Art-Film Direction and Production — Delhi

SS Rajamouli — Art-Film Direction and Production — Karnataka

Madhur Bhandarkar — Art-Film Direction and Production — Maharashtra

Prof M Venkatesh Kumar — Art-Folk Artist — Karnataka

Ms Gulabi Sapera — Art-Folk Dance — Rajasthan

Smt Mamta Chandrakar — Art-Folk Music — Chhattisgarh

Ms Malini Awasthi — Art-Folk Music — Uttar Pradesh

Jai Prakash Lekhiwal — Art-Miniature Painting — Delhi

K Laxma Goud — Art-Painting — Telangana

Bhalchandra Dattatray Mondhe — Art-Photography — Madhya Pradesh

Naresh Chander Lal — Art-Theatre & Cinema — Andaman & Nicobar

Dhirendra Nath Bezbaruah — Literature & Education — Assam

Prahlad Chandra Tasa — Literature & Education — Assam

Dr Ravindra Nagar — Literature & Education — Delhi

Dahyabhai Shastri — Literature & Education — Gujarat

Dr Santeshivara Bhyrappa — Literature & Education — Karnataka

Haldar Nag — Literature & Education — Odisha

Kameshwaram Brahma — Literature & Education -Journalism — Assam

Prof Pushpesh Pant — Literature & Education-Journalism — Delhi

Jawaharlal Kaul — Literature & Education-Journalism — Jammu & Kashmir

Ashok Malik — Literature & Education — Delhi

Dr Mannam Gopi Chand — Medicine-Cardio Thoracic Surgery — Telangana

Prof Ravi Kant — Medicine-Surgery — Uttar Pradesh

Prof Ram Harsh Singh — Medicine- Ayurveda — Uttar Pradesh

Prof Shiv Narain Kureel — Medicine- Paediatric Surgery — Uttar Pradesh

Dr Sabya Sachi Sarkar — Medicine -Radiology — Uttar Pradesh

Dr Alla Gopala Krishna Gokhale — Medicine-Cardiac Surgery — Andhra Pradesh

Prof TK Lahiri — Medicine-Cardio Thoracic Surgery — Uttar Pradesh

Dr Praveen Chandra — Medicine-Cardiology — Delhi

Prof (Dr) Daljeet Singh Gambhir — Medicine-Cardiology — Uttar Pradesh

Dr Chandrasekar Shesadri Thoguluva — Medicine-Gastroenterology — Tamil Nadu

Dr (Mrs) Anil Kumari Malhotra — Medicine-Homeopathy — Delhi

Prof MV Padma Srivastava — Medicine-Neurology — Delhi

Dr Sudhir V Shah — Medicine-Neurology — Gujarat

Dr MM Joshi — Medicine-Ophthalmology — Karnataka

Prof (Dr) John Ebnezar — Medicine-Orthopaedic Surgery — Karnataka

Dr Nayudamma Yarlagadda — Medicine-Paediatric Surgery — Andhra Pradesh

Simon Oraon — Other -Environment Conservation — Jharkhand

Imitiaz Qureshi — Other-Culinary — Delhi

Piyush Pandey — Others-Advertising & Communication — Maharashtra

Subhash Palekar — Others-Farming — Maharashtra

Ravinder Kumar Sinha — Others-Wildlife Conservation — Bihar

Dr HR Nagendra — Others-Yoga — Karnataka

MC Mehta — Public Affairs — Delhi

MN Krishna Mani — Public Affairs — Delhi

Ujjwal Nikam — Public Affairs — Maharashtra

Tokheho Sema — Public Affairs — Nagaland

Dr Satish Kumar — Science & Engineering — Delhi

Dr Mylswamy Annadurai — Science & Engineering — Karnataka

Prof Dipankar Chatterji — Science & Engineering — Karnataka

Prof(Dr) Ganapati Dadasaheb Yadav — Science & Engineering — Maharashtra

Smt (Prof) Veena Tandon — Science & Engineering — Meghalaya

Onkar Nath Srivastava — Science and Engineering — Uttar Pradesh

Ms Sunita Krishnan — Social Work — Andhra Pradesh

Ajoy Kumar Dutta — Social Work — Assam

M Pandit Dasa — Social Work — Karnataka

PP Gopinathan Nair — Social Work — Kerala

Smt Madeleine Herman de Blic — Social Work — Puducherry

Srinivasan Damal Kandalai — Social work — Tamil Nadu

Sudhakar Olwe — Social Work — Maharashtra

Dr TV Narayana — Social Work — Telangana

Arunachalam Murugantham — Social Work — Tamil Nadu

Ms Deepika Kumari — Sports-Archery — Jharkhand

S Sushil Doshi — Sports-commentary — Madhya Pradesh

Mahesh Sharma — Trade & Industry — Delhi

Saurabh Srivastava — Trade & Industry — Delhi

Sh Dilip Sanghvi — Trade & Industry — Maharashtra

Dr Keki Hormusji Gharda — Trade & Industry — Maharashtra

Late Prakash Chand Surana (Posthumous) — Art -Classical Music — Rajasthan

Late Saeed Jaffrey (NRI/PIO/Posthumous) — Art-Cinema — UK

Michael Postel (Foreigner) — Art-Archaeology — France

Salman Amin Sal Khan (NRI/PIO) — Literature & Education — USA

Smt Hui Lan Zhang (Foreigner) — Others-Yoga — China

Predrag K Nikic (Foreigner) — Others-Yoga — Serbia

Dr Sundar Aditya Menon (NRI/PIO) — Social Work — UAE

Ajaypal Singh Banga (NRI/PIO) — Trade & Industry — US

Sirshendu De of IIT Kharagpur selected for Innovation Award 2016 by Indian Desalination Association (IDA) South Zone for developing ultra low-cost eco-friendly laterite based arsenic water filter.

South Asian Public Affairs Council (SAPAC) in Australia honored Actor Randeep Hooda with achievement award for making his mark in film industry.

Tezpur University won annual Visitor’s Award for ‘Best University’ and Prof. Rakesh Bhatnagar and Molecular Parasitology Group of JNU won Visitor’s Awards for ‘Research’ and ‘Innovation’.

Three British scientists Timothy Bliss, Graham Collingridge and Graham Collingridge have won 2016 Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize (also known as Brain Prize) for giving vital insight how human brain remembers, learns and navigates.

Tikka Shatrujit Singh is conferred with Knight of the Legion of Honour by French Government.

Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman honoured with Association for Computing Machinery's 2015 A.M. Turing Award.

Books

Aishwaryaa Dhanush, Indian film artist has written her autobiography - Standing On An Apple Box. She is daughter of legendary actor Rajinikanth and wife of Kollywood actor Dhanush.

Book Fixed! Cash and Corruption in Cricket, authored by Journalist Shantanu Guha Ray has been launched.

Book Gandhi: An Illustrated Biography is authored by Pramod Kapoor.

Book The Culture Heritage of Trans Himalayas-Kinnaur has been written by P.S. Nagi Loktus.

Book Who was Shivaji? authored by Govind Pansare launched.

The Biography of Actor and Politician Shatrughan Sinha - Anything But Khamosh has been released.

Committees

Committee made by Central Board of Direct Taxes under Akhilesh Ranjan, to examine business models for e-commerce and identify direct tax issues in relation to e-commerce transactions has submitted its report.

Finance Ministry constituted a Sub-Committee under High Level Committee (HLC) to review issues related to excise duty. The sub committee will be headed by Ashok Lahiri and will review excise duty imposed on different jewellery articles in Budget 2016-17.

Government constituted a committee under Mahesh Kumar Singla, to consider Scheduled Tribe status to six Communities of Assam (Koch Rajbongshi, Moran, Matak, Tai Ahom, Chutia and Adivasi).

Karnataka Government launched Mukhyamantri Santwana Harish Yojana to provide free treatment to road accident victims for first 48 hours in nearest hospital.

PM Narendra Modi constituted a task force under Rajiv Kumar (Additional Secretary in Department of Personnel and Training) to rationalise central government staff and ensure their maximum optimisation.

Tenure of A P Shah Committee looking into dispute between ONGC and RIL regarding blocks in KG basin has been extended till 31st July, 2016.

Days

08 March - International Women’s Day. Theme is Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality. The campaign theme for the day is #PledgeForParity. NITI Aayog launched Women Transforming India initiative in partnership with UN.

1 Mar - 40th Civil Accounts Day of India.

1 Mar - Zero Discrimination Day. Theme is Stand Out.

10 MARCH - World Kidney Day (Second Thursday of March). Theme for 2016 is Kidney Disease & Children. Act Early to Prevent It!.

10th edition of World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF’s) Earth Hour observed across World.

15 March - World Consumer Rights Day. 2016 Theme is Antibiotics off the menu.

20 March - International Day of Happiness. 2016 theme is Angry Birds Happy Planet.

20 March - world sparrow day.

21 March - International Day for Elimination of Racial Discrimination. 2016 theme is Challenges and Achievements of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.

21 March - World Poetry day.

21st March - International Day of Forests. Theme for 2016 is Forests and water.

21st March - World Down syndrome Day (WDSD). 2016 theme is My friends, My Community.

22 March - World Water Day. 2016 Theme is Better Water, Better Jobs. On this occasion, Swedish furniture firm IKEA announced to contribute 12.4 million euro (Rs 92.84 crore) to provide safe water and sanitation to 10 lakh people in India and Indonesia through Water Org.

23rd March - World Meteorological Day. Theme for 2016 is Hotter, Drier, Wetter. Face the Future.

24 March - World Tuberculosis (TB) Day. 2016 Theme is Unite to End TB.

25th March - International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. 2016 Theme is Remember Slavery: Celebrating the Heritage and Culture of the African Diaspora and its Roots.

27 March - World Theatre Day. Russian Dramatist Anatoly Vasiliev was World Theatre Day International Message Author 2016.

3rd MARCH - World Wildlife Day. 2016 theme is The future of wildlife is in our hands.

Mar 4 - National Safety Day/ Week Campaign in India. 2016 theme is Strengthen Safety Movement to Achieve Zero Harm.

Defence

Cabinet Committee on Security approved purchasing 2 Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), surveillance aircrafts from Israel, at cost of 7,500 crores.

Fast patrol vessel of Indian Coast Guard ICGS Arnvesh has been commissioned.

Fourth India-Indonesia Joint Training Exercise Garuda Shakti held in Indonesia.

Government unveiled Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 (DPP 2016), during Defexpo-2016 held in Goa.

DPP 2016 will replace DPP 2013, on the recommendations of the Dhirendra Singh Committee.

DPP 2016 will ensure timely procurement of defence (military) equipments through optimum utilization of allocated budgetary resources.

Capital Acquisitions Schemes are classified into 3 categories -

Buy scheme - Outright purchase of equipments under this scheme are further categorized as Buy (Indian- IDDM), Buy (Indian), and Buy (Global). IDDM stands for Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured.

Buy and Make scheme - Procurements are categorized as Buy and Make and Buy and Make (Indian).

Make category Scheme: It seeks developing long-term indigenous defence capabilities. It empowers Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) to take fast-track route to acquire weapons, which were limited to the armed forces till now.

Procurement of defence equipment : Arranged in decreasing order of priority are categorized as (i) Buy (India-IDDM). (ii) Buy (Indian). (iii) Buy and Make (Indian). (iv) Buy and Make. (v) Buy (Global).

Haryana became first state to implement use of injectable contraceptives as a family planning measure, under Project Salamati in assistance of Pathfinder International.

Hinduja Group’s Ashok Leyland Defence Systems Ltd (ALDS) tied up with US-based defence contractor Lockheed Martin Corp. to develop combat vehicles for Indian Army.

India issued an order to USA for buying 15 CH-47 Chinook and 21 AH-64 Apache Helicopters worth Rs 22,000 crores.

India's DRDO has developed a radar that can look through a wall of 20-30 CM Thickness, using thermal imaging. The Imaging Radar is named as Divyachakshu and developed by Electronics & Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) based in Bangalore.

India's first indigenous composites sonar dome Designed by Defence and Research Development Organisation (DRDO), has been delivered to Mazgaon docks in Mumbai. All anti-submarine warfare (ASW) ships have a sonar array fitted to ship structure below waterline. It acts as ship’s underwater eyes and ears.

Indian Air Force's Exercise - Iron Fist 2016 held in Pokhran (Rajasthan). It is a biennial event that showcases firepower capacity of Indian Air Force.

Indian Navy for first deployed a P8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft to Seychelles for surveillance in Exclusive Economic Zone of Seychelles.

India’s biggest defece security exhibition Defence Expo 2016 held in Goa. Theme for 9th edition of DEFEXPO is Rise of Futurism.

Indigenously developedsurface-to-surface ballistic missile Agni-I successfully test-fired.Designed to carry both conventional and nuclear payload of about 1000 kg. Speed and Range: It can travel at a speed of 2.5 km/s with range upto 1250 kms.

Indo Tibetan Border Police’s (ITBP) modern weapon and support weapon training centre will be set up in Damoh, Madhya Pradesh at cost of 2,100 crores.

Multinational Field Training Exercise (FTX) FORCE 18, involving ASEAN Plus countries held in Pune (Maharashtra). Sofia Qureshi became first woman officer to lead Indian Army contingent at a multi-national military exercise.

Tata Motors signed contract with Indian Army to supply 619 units of its high-mobility vehicle (HMV) 6X6 multi-axle trucks to Army.

Economy

108 feet tall idol of Lord Rishabhdeva, the first Teerthankar of Jains, carved out of a single rock, has entered Guinness World Records as world’s tallest Jain statue. It is located on Mangi Tungi mountain near Teharabad village of North Maharashtra district (Maharashtra).

Aditya Birla Group's UltraTech acquired JP Group’s cement plants for Rs 16,500 crores.

After IRDAI's approval of Life insurance company of India (LIC)'s investment proposal in Public Sector Banks, LIC announced to buy Additional stake in Public Sector Banks - Dena Bank and Andhra Bank. Dena bank sold shares worth Rs 65 crore to LIC and Andhra Bank sold 4.23 % equity to LIC.

At end of December 2015, India's external debt stood at US$ 480.2 billion, increase of US$ 4.9 billion (1.0 per cent) over March 2015. Rise in debt is due to long-term external debt particularly commercial borrowings and NRI deposits.

Bajaj Finance announced to enter 20,000-crore life care segment.

Bharti Airtel will buy Videocon Telecom's 4G spectrum in six circles for Rs 4,428 crores. It will extend Bharti Airtel's 4G footprint across bands to 19 circles from 15.

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana - Scheme for Providing Free LPG connections to Women from BPL Households at cost of 8000 crores. Undet this, five crore LPG connections will be provided to BPL households with financial support of 1600 for each LPG connection.

Central Board of Direct Taxes signed 11 unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs), taking number of into APAs to 59. Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) programme was introduced in 2012 to provide a predictable tax regime and reduce litigation in transfer pricing regime.

Cinema exhibition chain PVR cinemas and e-Commerce Firm Paytm tied up to sell PVR Movie Tickets at Paytm's e-commerce platform.

Commerce and Industry Ministry approved foreign direct investment (FDI) upto 49% in insurance and pension sector.

Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) has permitted 100% FDI in e-commerce retailing (Like Flipkart and Snapdeal), to attract more foreign investors.

Digital payments platform FreeCharge partnered with Mexico-based chain of movie theatres, Cinepolis to provide its customers an easy way of making payments.

Domestic card payment service provider RuPay will launch its credit card segment in September 2016 by issuing 1 lakh Credit Cards. Note that Rupay has increasing its market share to 38 % in debit card segment.

During 5th National Industrial & Trade Fair organised by Dalit Indian Chamber Commerce & Industry (DICCI), Government announced to aim at creating 2.5 lakh new SC / ST entrepreneurs in country, under Stand up India Start up India initiative.

Federal Bank will open startup incubation centers for startups in Bangalore (Karnataka) and Ernakulam (Kerala).

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced to withdraw proposal to tax Employee Provident Fund (EPF) withdrawals. As per Union Budget 2016-17, 60 % of amount deposited in EPF account of the employee would be taxable at time of withdrawal, and 40 % would be tax free.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched NABARD Agri-Credit Monitoring portal, which will help financial institutions to monitor status of agricultural loans given to farmers. He also unveiled Roadmap of E-Shakti Expansion Programme of digitization of Self-Help Groups (SHGs).

Finance Minister Aurn Jaitley launched Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and Unified Package Insurance Scheme. Revamped insurance scheme will be launched from April 1, 2016 to cover Kharif crops. Farmers' premium would be 2% for Kharif foodgrains and oilseeds crops and 1.5% for rabi crops.

Finance Ministry approved proposal of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh states for issuance of Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) bonds. These states have 35% of all outstanding loans of State electricity distribution utilities in India. These bonds will allow state governments to take over 75 % of power distribution companies (DISCOMs) debt and pay lenders by issuing bonds.

Global rating agency Fitch predicted India's growth forecast at 7.5 % for 2015-2016 and also sees higher growth around 7.7 % & 7.9 % over next 2 years.

Government announced exclusive and unique Organic Value Chain Development scheme for Rs. 115 crore for North Eastern Region. It is aimed at boosting organic Farming entrepreneurship in North East.

Government announced that in 2014-2015, 116 Public Sector Enterprises (PSUs) spent Rs 2448 Crores on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities.

Government announced to digitally connect all 1,29,323 gramin dak sewak post offices in rural areas across country by March 2017.

Government formally withdrawn recognition of Delhi Stock Exchange (DSE) after allegations of serious irregularities in its functioning.

Government imposed anti-dumping duty of up to 44.7 % on import of plastic-processing machines from Chinese Taipei, Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam for five years.

Government informed that in 2015-16, there has been highest ever production of urea in country since independence. 245 lakh MT Ureas was produced in India in 2015-16, 20 lakh MT more than last year.

Government notified interest rates payable on small savings for Quarter April 1 - June 30, 2016 -

Public Provident Fund - 8.1 % (Previously 8.7 %)

Kisan Vikas Patra - 7.8 % (Previously 8.7 %)

Five-Year National Savings Certificates - 8.1 % (previously 8.5 %)

Five-year Monthly Income Account - 7.8 % (previously 8.4 %)

Girl-child saving scheme, Sukanya Samriddhi Account - 8.6 % (previously 9.2 %)

Senior citizen savings scheme - 8.6 % (previously 9.3)

Government notified maximum sale price (MSP) of Bt cotton seed for 2016-17. As per notification, Price of BG-I version of Bt cotton hybrid is set at 635 rupees while Price of BG-II version is fixed at 800 rupees.

Government provided loan of 1000 crore rupees to Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore (FACT) Limited, to be repaid within 5 years.

Government will announcd a policy to give incentives including interest discount of 0.25 % for increasing capacity of Wind mills of up to 1MW. Most of wind-turbines installed are of capacity below 500 kW and at sites with high wind energy potential. It will increase in wind energy capacity by 3000 MW.

Gujarat topped list of 21 states with most investment potential, as per report by NCAER. Gujarat is followed by Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Himachal Pradesh Government released its 6th Economic Census report. It was started in 2012 and completed in two phases. Himachal Pardesh is first state to complete economic census and release report.

Hitachi-Omron Terminal Solutions has established a new company in Bengaluru as an ATM manufacturing company, to produce 1,500 units of ATMs per month.

ICICI Bank launched iWork@Home programme for its women employees to enable them to work from home. By using the platform, employees can carry out multiple daily banking tasks from home.

ICICI Bank launched a credit-linked subsidy scheme for home loans under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). Under this, eligible customers will get subsidy at 6.5 % per annum on Rs 6 lakh or loan amount, whichever is lower, for upto 15 years.

ICICI Bank launched contactless mobile payment solution iTA, Touch & Pay based on Near Field Communication (NFC) technology. It will enable ICICI customers to make payments by waving their smartphones near an NFC-enabled merchant terminal, by leveraging Host Card Emulation technique.

ICICI Bank tied up with sports car maker Ferrari to launch co-branded credit card.

IRDAI, Regulatory authority of Insurance sector has approved Life insurance company of India (LIC)'s investment proposal in Public Sector Banks.

India Post selected Deloitte as consultant for setting up a payments bank. Public Investment Board has approved 800-crore proposal of India Post for the setting up a payment bank.

India Signed USD 35 Million Loan Agreement with World Bank for Madhya Pradesh Citizen Access to Responsive Services Project.

India signed Loan agreement of USD 250 Million For First Programmatic Electricity distribution Reform Development Policy Loan for Rajasthan.

India will launch 25 foreign satellites of seven countries in 2016-17, most of USA (12). So far, 57 foreign satellites from 21 countries have been launched using Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

India's GDP will grow by 7.9 % in 2016-17, as predicted by credit rating agency CRISIL.

India's Hero Cycles, world's largest bicycle manufacturer by volume has acquired 60 % stake in Sri Lanka's bicycle manufactur BSH Ventures.

India's current account deficit (CAD) came down to 1.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) ($34 billion) in third quarter (October 2015 to December 2015) from 1.5% in the year-earlier period ($38.6 billion ).

India's largest selling car, Maruti Alto crossed lifetime sale milestone of 30 Lakh Units in 15 years. It is only Indian auto brand to cross this milestone.

India's largest telecom operator Bharti Airtel acquired Videocon Telecom for Rs 4,428 crores.

Indian Overseas Bank became first bank to commence sale of Indian Gold Coin (IGC) in the domestic market with a tie up with Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation (MMTC).

Indian Railways has formed a new Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to implement Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Bullet Train project. Entity is named as National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRC) Limited.

International Finance Corporation (IFC) of World Bank launched its first Uridashi Masala Bonds (Japanese bonds), to mobilise 30 crore rupees from Japanese retail investors and will be sold to Japanese household investors. The proceeds from these bonds will be used for promoting private sector development in India.

Masala bonds are rupee-denominated instruments sold only to offshore investors by Indian corporates for raising money from overseas investors.

Jalandhar based Capital Local Area Bank (CLAB) Limited became first entity in India to get Small Financial Bank Licence by Reserve Bank of India (RBI). CLAB ltd has 44 branches in 5 districts of Punjab. It will start opearting on April 13, 2016.

Small finance banks will undertake basic banking activities of acceptance of deposits and lending to underserved people to promote financial inclusion.

Difference in Payment Banks and Small Finance Banks -

Title Small Finance Bank Payments Bank

Eligibility Professionals with 10 years in financial services or promoter group with 5 year track record Card Issuers, Finance Companies, Business Correspondents, Telecom Companies, Retailers etc.

Capital Requirement Rs. 100 Crore Equity Capital Rs. 100 Crore Equity Capital

Scope of Activity Providing basic banking facilities to poor and small businessmen Accept Deposits, Issue Debit Cards, Remittance services. Can not issue credit cards and can not give Loans

Promoter Contribution Promoter’s initial contribution should be 40% lowered to 26% in 12 years Promoters should retain a 40% stake for first five years.

Jammu & Kashmir State Administrative Council (JKSAC) approved 10 year Industrial Policy-2016, aimed at attracting over 2000 crore rupees investment per annum. It Includes creating 15000 employment opportunities annually and creation of land bank of 2500 acres across state. An asset reconstruction company in partnership with J&K Bank will also be set up.

Memorandum of Understanding signed between Indian Army and Induslnd Bank on Defence Salary package.

Minister of Women and Child Development, Maneka Sanjay Gandhi launched Mahila e-Haat as online marketing platform for women. It is a unique online platform where participants can display their products, as part of Digital India and Stand Up India initiatives.

Private sector Bank Lakshmi Vilas Bank tied up with National Bulk Handling Corporation (NBHC) for collateral management and warehousing services.

Punjab signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) under Scheme UDAY – Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana and became 7th state to do so. Combined DISCOM debt to be restructured for 7 participating states is 1.6 lakh crores. Total outstanding DISCOM debt is 4.3 lakh crores.

Rajya Sabha passed Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015 that will replace Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986.

It extends ambit of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to include services, processes and products while ensuring production of world class goods.

It also proposes to make BIS a national standards body, introduce mandatory hallmarking of precious metals, prevent misuse of standard marks and provides for recall of ISI marked products not conforming to relevant standards.

Earlier, the Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on 3 December 2015.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) revised norms on capital recognition, making available an additional Rs.40,000 crore to Indian banks. It is big relief for public sector banks as they are facing low profitability issues due to rise in Non Performing assets.

Reserve Bank of India released Non-Banking Financial Company - Account Aggregator Directions, 2016

Net Owned Fund should not be less than 2 crore rupees.

An account aggregator will not be able to undertake any other business other than account aggregation.

Initially, only financial assets whose records are stored electronically and under regulation of financial sector regulators like RBI, SEBI, IRDA, and PFRDA shall be considered for aggregation.

No financial asset related customer information pulled out account aggregator from financial service providers.

An account aggregator will not support transactions in financial assets.

About Account Aggregator -

At present, persons holding financial assets such as savings bank deposits, mutual funds, insurance policies etc do not get a consolidated view of their financial asset holdings. Account aggregator collects and provides information of customers’ financial assets in a consolidated and organised manner to customer.

Retreat for Banks and Financial Institutions called Gyan Sangam held at State Bank Academy, Gurgaon (Haryana).

Ride sharing service provider Uber opened its first Asian engineering center in Bengaluru highlighting focus on India to solve challenges of Uber users in India.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) increased Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) investment limit in Government securities from 135400 to 140000 crores. It will boost inflows of foreign funds into Indian capital markets. Limit will further be increased to 144000 crore rupees from 5 July 2016.

Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi) will be raising 10000 crores for 'Stand Up India Fund' from RBI, which will be disbursed to Dalit and women entrepreneurs.

South Indian Bank announced to have achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification.

State Bank of India has been granted approval to operate in Myanmar by Myanmar Government along with three other Asian banks - Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam, Sun Commercial Bank of Taiwan and Shinhan Bank of South Korea.

Supreme Court directed telecom operators to ensure threshold limit of call drops of 2 percent % as mandated in regulations of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).

TRA Brand Trust Report, India Study 2016 -

Amazon is India's most trusted online shopping brand followed Snapdeal and Flipkart.

Ebay, Myntra, Yepme, Jabong, Naaptol, Shopclues and Askmebazaar in top 10 online brands.

This year, Reserve Bank of India and Other Government Banks are expected to pay Rs.69,897 crores dividend to Government. RBI will have approx 57000 Crores in this. It is lesser than last year in which government received 73,905 crores as dividends from government banks and RBI.

World Bank approved IDA credit of US$ 300 Million for Madhya Pradesh Higher Education Quality Improvement Project.

YES Bank signed Memorandum of Understanding with India Brazil Chamber of Commerce (IBCC) for cooperation in knowledge partnerships, B2B opportunitiesa and technology initiatives.

Yes Bank launched an all-women operated bank branch Yes Grace aimed at offering customised banking solutions to women.

Zee Media will acquire 80 % stake in India Today group's loss-making e-commerce and TV entities - Today Merchandise and Today Retail Network Pvt Ltd for 166 crores.

International

1st direct container vessel between India and Bangladesh sent off from Krishnapatnam port, carrying cotton set. It is part of coastal shipping agreement between two countries to facilitate easy trade.

4th United Nations’ World Happiness Index (WHI) 2016 (published by Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN))-

Top 10 - Denmark, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway and Finland, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia and Sweden

Last 10 - Rwanda (152nd), Benin (153rd), Afghanistan (154th), Togo (155th), Syria (156th) and Burundi (157th).

India ranked at 118th place, Nepal (78th), China (83rd), and Pakistan (104th).

BRICS - Brazil (17th), Russia (56th), China (83rd), South Africa (116th) and India (118th).

Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment report of UN Environment Programme (UNEP) -

India and China led developing countries in investments made in renewable energy in 2015.

Commitments of emerging economies in renewable energy has surpassed those by wealthy nations.

Developing nations committed 156 billion dollars in new renewable energy in 2015 year (19% more from 2014), mainly by India, China and Brazil. Developed countries' contribution came down by 8 % cent in 2015 to 130 billion dollars.

China's investment was 102.9 billion dollars, India invested USD 10.2 billion.

United States, Japan, UK Brazil, South Africa, Mexico and Chile were also in top 10 investing countries in 2015.

According to WaterAid report - Water: At what cost?, The State of the World’s Water, India has highest number of 7.6 crore people in world without access to safe water supply, followed by China and Nigeria.

After delay of over 20 years, Myanmar’s stock exchange opened for its first day of business with trading of a single company. It came after Myanmar’s development accelerating with a democratic government being formed after five decades of Military Rule.

Agreement between European Union (EU) and Turkey to tackle migrant crisis came into effect. Under this agreement, migrants arriving in Greece will be sent back to Turkey if their asylum claim is rejected.

Air India successfully flew World’s longest all-woman operated flight from New Delhi to San Francisco (United States). Flight was operated as part of International Women's Day celebrations and travelled a distance of around 14,500 kilometres in 17 hours.

Akamai's State of the Internet’ report -

South Korea has fastest average connection speed in the world at 26.7 Mbps, Sweden second with average speed of 19.1 Mbps and followed by Norway at 18.8 Mbps.

India is at 114th position with an average internet speed of 2.8 Mbps. China is 89th with average speed of 4.1Mbps.

American company Cisco Systems will invest over $100 million in India over next 2 years to support India's plan to connect thousands of its villages to the internet and create jobs. Around 250,000 students will be trained by CISCO by 2020.

As per data by CB Insights, 14 Indian investors have been featured a list of top 100 venture capitalists in world.

As per research of Lancet journal of Oxford Martin Future of Food Programme -

Climate change will result in over 5 Lakh adult deaths by 2050 worldwide due to changes in diets and bodyweight from reduced crop productivity.

China will see more deaths than any other country with 251 deaths per one million population. India is ranked 7 overall with deaths of 105 per million.

As per security solutions firm Symantec, India ranked 3rd in number of financial Trojan infections where cybercriminals defraud customers of online banking services. India moved up from 5th position in 2014 to 3 in 2015. Note that global detections have dropped by 73%.

Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Unites States Agency for International Development (USAID) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for development of solar parks in India. It will facilitate 848 million US dollars in funding to develop solar parks across India, with initiall focus on state of Rajasthan.

Bangladesh's supreme court rejected a 28-year-old petition to remove Islam as official religion of country. Islam was introduced as state religion in the Bangladeshi constitution in 1988 and a group of 15 Individuals filed a Petition against it.

China announced to set up its own International Maritime Judicial Centre (IMJC) to handle territorial disputes and protect its sea rights.

China launched its first cyber security public organization aimed at better safeguarding national cyber security and guiding Internet companies.

China successfully launched 22nd new generation satellite as part of its domestic BeiDou Navigation System (BDS) as a rival to the US’s Global Positioning System (GPS). Launched using Long March-3A carrier rocket.

EIU’s Worldwide Cost of Living survey -

Singapore remains world’s most expensive city for third year in a row, top 5 costliest cities are -

Singapore

Zurich (Switzerland)

Hong Kong

Geneva (Switzerland)

Paris (France)

Top 5 cheapest cities - Lusaka (Zambia), Bangalore (India), Mumbai (India), Almaty (Kazakhstan) and Algiers (Algeria)

Forbes’ 30th annual billionaires list 2016 -

Microsoft Co-founder Bill Gates remains world’s richest person for 17th time in last 23 years, with a net worth of $75 billion.

Total billionaires in world are 1810 (190 are women) with their net worth of $6.48 trillion.

USA leads with 540 billionaires, followed by China (251), Germany (120) and India (84).

Top 5 - Bill Gates ($75 billion), Amancio Ortega ($67 billion), Warren Buffett ($60.8 billion), Carlos Slim Helu ($50 billion), Jeff Bezos ($45.2 billion).

Youngest billionaire - 19 year old Norwegain Alexandra Andresen (1.76 Billion USD).

India - Mukesh Ambani (38th ranks with $20.6 billion), Dilip Shanghvi (44th), Azim Premji (55th).

France announced to end its Operation Sangaris in Central African Republic in 2016.

Germany will help developing Kochi (Kerala), Bhubaneswar (Odisha) and Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) as smart cities.

Global Energy Architecture Performance Index (GEAPI) Report by World Economic Forum (WEF) -

India ranked at 90th out of 126 countries on the basis of their ability to deliver secure, affordable and sustainable energy.

Top 10 countries - Switzerland (1st), Norway (2nd), Sweden (3rd), France (4th), Denmark (5th), Austria (6th), Spain (7th), Colombia (8th), New Zealand (9th) and Uruguay (10th).

Among BRICS - Brazil (25th), Russia (52nd), India (90th) and China (94th).

Government approved MoU with United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Technical Cooperation in Combating Cyber-Crime.

Government approved 2 development projects with Bangladesh. These projects are 100 MW power export via transmission lines between Surjamaninagar (Tripura) and South Comilla in Bangladesh and India’s 3rd Internet Gateway optical fibre connection between Cox Bazaar in Bangladesh and Agartala (Tripura).

Government approved Ashgabat Agreement, an international transport and transit corridor established in 2011. It establishes transport corridor between Central Asia and Persian Gulf countries with Uzbekistan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Oman and Kazakhstan as founding members.

Government approved MoU with United Arab Emirates to mobilise long-term investment in National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF).

Government approved signing of Bay of Bengal Initiative on Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters.

Hinduja brothers (GP Hinduja and SP Hinduja) named richest Asian-origin entrepreneurs in Britain for 4th consecutive year with personal fortune of 16.5 billion pounds. List is compiled by UK-based publishing house Asian Media and Market.

India and France signed Memorandum of Understanding for construction of 6 nuclear reactors at Jaitapur nuclear park in Maharashtra.

India and USA launched Fulbright – Kalam Climate Fellowship , enabling Indian research scholars to work with American institutions in field of climate change. It will sponsor up to 6 Indian post-doctoral researchers to work in US for 1 year.

India announced to become first nation to formally adopt United Nations’ (UN) agenda for the world’s sustainable development and 17 goals identified for its implementation, during 11th National Convention on Sustainable Development Goal (NCSDG) organized by Global Compact Network in Mumbai.

India became 56th nation to sign Raptor MoU, Memorandum of Understanding on conservation of birds of prey in Africa and Eurasia.

India distributed scholarships to over 800 Bangladeshi students under 'Muktijodha Scholarship Scheme'.

India in 2006 started this scholarship scheme to strengthen historic legacy with Bangladesh.

Under the scheme, descendants of freedom fighters get selected on merit basis to pursue undergraduate studies. By far, over 9500 students have been benefited from this scheme.

India filed complaint against United States in World Trade Organisation, accusing USA of high fees on L-1 and H-1B categories of temporary working visas. As per India, It would impact Indian IT professionals as it makes Indian IT companies less competitive in that market.

India ovrertook China in terms of direct equity allocation by US investors. As per US Treasury, India makes up 1.8% of US foreign equity holdings as against 1.6% of China. US investors direct investment in Indian equities risen from $7 billion in September 2013 to $12 billion in December 2015. While that for in Chinese equities declined from $12.8 billion to $11.1 billion.

India signed MoU with USA for building a Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) project for research on gravitational waves. The Project is called IndIGO (Indian Initiative in Gravitational-wave Observations).

India signed second line of credit (LOC) agreement for providing 2 billion dollars in development financing to Bangladesh for various development projects. It will be provided through Export Import Bank of India.

India will supply 100 megawatt of electricity to Bangladesh in return for 10 gigabits per second internet bandwidth. Aim is to provide internet connectivity to North-Eastern states.

Indian Leading IT Services Provider Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is recognized as Global Top Employer by Top Employers Institute. The assessment was done among 1,072 companies worldwide across 9 core HR areas.

Indian Medicine Maker Biocon Ltd got Japan's approval for selling its biosimilar Insulin Glargine in Japan.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) approved 2.3 million euro initiative to help Latin American and Caribbean countries fight against Zika virus. IAEA will transfer Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) as a pest control that uses ionizing radiation to sterilize male insects mass-produced in special rearing facilities.

International Labour Organization (ILO) released report Women at Work: Trends 2016 as a picture of women’s position in labour markets

Report says that gender equality in workplace remains questionable.

Between 1995 and 2015, global female labour force participation decreased from 52.4 to 49.6 % while that for men decreaed from 79.9 to 76.1 %.

Women are more likely to be unemployed than men, with global unemployment rates of 5.5 % for men and 6.2 % for women.

Since 1995, women’s employment in services has increased from 41.1 to 61.5 %.

Gender wage gap is 23 %, it means that women earn 77 % of what men earn.

65 % of people above retirement age without any regular pension are women.

Iran and Pakistan mutually agreed to boost bilateral cooperation on regional security and trade.

Iran signed an oil agreement with France's Total to develope South Azadegan oil field shared by Iran and Iraq.

Iran test-fired several ballistic missiles and breached United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions that compel it to refrain from any work on ballistic missiles for 8 years.

Japan NTT Data has acquired Dell's IT Services arm for over 20000 Crores.

Japan committed for Official Development Assistance loan of an amount of Approx. Rs.14,251 Crores for Transmission System Strengthening in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha Integrated Sanitation Improvement Project, Dedicated Freight Corridor Project (Phase 1), North East Road Network Connectivity Improvement Project (Phase 1) and Jharkhand Horticulture Intensification by Micro Drip Irrigation Project.

Japanese government stipulated long-term goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80 % by 2050.

Japanese investment bank SoftBank Group has announced to separate its profitable domestic mobile business from its international business. Both subsidiaries will be completely owned by SoftBank.

London & Partners, official promotional company for London announced that India has became second biggest investor in London after USA, with 117 % increase in Indian companies investing in London since 2005.

Malawi Government and UNICEF successfully tested use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs / drones) to explore cost effective ways of reducing waiting times for HIV testing of infants.

Nepal has been made a dialogue partner of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), a Beijing-based regional security grouping. SCO has 8 Members - China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan.

Nepal signed an agreement with China to build a strategic railway link between two countries through Tibet.

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released electronic format for exchange of Country-by-Country (CbC) reports between jurisdictions -- CbC XML Schema. The CbC reports assist tax administrations in obtaining a complete understanding of how Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) operate.

Pakistan ratified 2005 Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM) that expands its scope to cover atomic facilities and material in peaceful use and storage.

Peru declared emergency for 3 weeks after a major oil (3000 Barrels) pipeline burst in northeast region affecting two rivers Chiriaco and Morona.

Railways Firm RITES Lmited signed contract to supply 18 Meter Gauge 1350 HP Diesel Electric Locomotives to Myanmar Railways, to help Myanmar meet increasing demand for traffic.

Ratings agency Moody's cut its outlook for China from stable to negative, based on expectations that fiscal strength of China would be sliding down and negative outlook comes on heels of fresh data suggesting economy of China is continuing to lose steam.

Reliance Defence inked pact with Israel's Rafael Advanced Defence System to set up a JV in India for specialised areas including air- to-air missiles, with investment of USD 10 billion.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bank of Israel (BOI) for exchange of information pertaining to banking supervision.

Russia's own credit-ratings firm, ACRA started functioning after Moody’s and Fitch Ratings decided to stop issuing local ratings for Russian Companies.

Russian Government approved a deal of ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) to acquire 15% stake in Vankor oilfield from Rosneft.

South Korea passed its first anti-terror bill that was first proposed 15 years ago in 2001 after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in US.

Sri Lankan Parliament adopted a resolution to convert itself into a Constitutional Assembly.

Syrian Army regained control of ancient city of Palmyra from Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group.

Taiwan's Foxconn Technology will acquire Japan’s Sharp Corporation for 3.5 billion US dollars.

Telangana and Maharashtra Governments have signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) to set up an inter-state water board construct 5 barrages across Godavari and Pen Ganga rivers.

Thailand government will implement curfew during 2016 Songkran festival to show solidarity with farmers hit by drought. Songkran festival is World’s biggest water festival, celebrated every year in Thailand from 13 to 15 April.

Time Magazine 2016 list of 30 most influential people on internet -

Top 5 are - Kanye West (US), Joy Cho (South Korea), James Corden (UK), Laci Green (US), Josh Holz and Daniel Lara (US)

Indian PM Narendra Modi ranked at 15th Place.

UNICEF launched a series of animated films to help frame positive perceptions towards crores of Migrants globally, Called Unfairy Tales.

US and South Korean began their largest ever military exercises. These bilateral exercises come just after UN passed sanctions against North Korea following its recent nuclear test and rocket launch. 8-week long drills will involve 300000 South Korean and 15000 US personnel.

USA returned an ancient statue of Hindu god Rama stolen from Cambodia during Cambodia’s civil war in 1970s. The statue stands 157 centimetres tall and is missing its head, arms and feet.

United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have launched Blue Dot hubs to boost protection for children and families on move across Europe.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Institute of Physics released e-Atlas of Gender Inequality in Education.

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and United Nations Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) jointly launched Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage.

United Nations Security Council adopted toughest sanctions ever imposed on North Korea in response to its fourth nuclear test and rocket launch.

United Nations Security Council extended UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) till 31 March 2017. Resolution was approved to support a transparent electoral process in 2016 and universal elections by 2020.

World Bank Approved Loan of $100 Million for Jordan to help create 100,000 jobs for Syrian refugees and its own citizen.

World's most expensive train station opened at 9/11 site in New York (United States), named as World Trade Center Transportation Hub. It was constructed at cost of 3.85 billion USD and designed by the Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava.

World’s first fully electric-powered double-decker bus launched in London (UK). It is built by Chinese manufactur BYD and will be able to travel 180 miles on a single charge.

Meetings

13TH India-EU Summit held in Brussels (Belgium) -

PM Narendra Modi Visited on India'a Behalf. It is part of his Tri Nation Journey to Belgium, USA ad Saudi Arabia.

PM Modi and his Belgian counterpart Charles Michel from Belgium Remotely Launched Asia’s largest optical telescope Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) at Devasthal in Nainital District, Uttrakahnd. It has been located at a height of 2,500 metres at Devasthal in Nainital district and has mirror of 3.6 m diameter.

European Investment Bank (EIB), will lend India €450 million (approximately Rs. 3,300 crore) towards constructing a 23-km long Lucknow Metro rail line and a purchasing a fleet of new trains. EIB also approved to set up Its regional representation for South Asia in New Delhi.

EU-India Agenda for Action 2020 - India and EU endorsed agenda to concrete road-map for EU-India Strategic Partnership for upto 2020.

EU-India Broad-based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) - India and EU agreed to further negotiations on early conclusion of BTIA.

Joint Declaration on the India-EU Water Partnership was adopted to enhance cooperation on environment issues, including on the ‘Clean India' and ‘Clean Ganga’ flagship programmes.

13th meeting of Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development held in Dubai (United Arab Emirates).

31st edition of largest fair on Food and Hospitality Sector in India, AAHAR 2016 held in New Delhi.

4-day World Sufi Forum meeting held in Delhi. It is organized by All India Ulama and Mashaikh Board (AIUMB).

4th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves held at Lima (Peru). Aim is to address different issues related to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Post 2015 Development Agenda. My Biosphere, My Future campaign of UNESCO was launched on this occasion.

57 countries will take part in first Maritime India Summit 2016 to be held in April 2016 in Mumbai (Maharashtra).

7th meeting of Indo-German Science and Technology Centre (IGSTC) held in Delhi.

8th BRICS Summit will be hosted in Goa on 15-16 October 2016.

First Raisina-Dialogue 2016, a flagship conference on Geopolitics and Geo-economics Held in New Delhi. It is joint initiative of Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Observer Research Foundation (ORF) with theme - Asia: Regional and Global Connectivity.

Global Bamboo Summit 2016 to be held in India in April 2016 at Indore (Madhya Pradesh).

India Aviation 2016, an international exhibition and conference on civil aviation held in Hyderabad (Telangana).

India will host BRICS Friendship Cities Conclave in Mumbai (Maharashtra) in April 2016.

Indian Institute of Technology Patna organised First International Symposium on Fifth Generation (5G) technology, to bring organizations to share views over possible 5G technologies.

Indian Naval ship Beas visited Qatar to participate in 5th edition of Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition (DIMDEX).

National level AROGYA Fair organized by Ministry of AYUSH in Goa.

SAARC ministerial meet Held in Nepal, Attended by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on India's Behalf.

National

According to a report by New World Wealth -

India saw 4th biggest outflow of High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI) globally in 2015 with shifting of 4,000 millionaires overseas.

France saw the maximum outflow of millionaires (10,000), followed by China (9,000) and Italy (6,000).

Adani Group unit Aero Defence Systems & Technologies Ltd signed agreement with Elbit-ISTAR of Israel and India's Alpha Design Technologies to work in field of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).

Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh launched Pusa Krishi mobile app at Krishi Unnati Mela in New Delhi. It will help farmers to find solutions to problems in their farm fields and also getting information about weather.

Andhra Pradesh government inaugurated India's first river linking project, Pattiseema lift irrigation project connecting Godavari River with Krishna River from ongoing Polavaram Multi-purpose Irrigation Project. It has been completed in an year by Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (MEIL).

Art of Living's World Culture Festival organised at Yamuna Flood Plains, New Delhi from March 11 to 13, 2016. Art of Living is founded by Spiritual Leader Sri Sri Ravishankar.

As per new Restrictions imposed by Railways, An unreserved train ticket for travelling up to 199 km distance will no longer be valid after 3 hours of purchase of the ticket. So journey has to be started within 3 hours in case of Unreserved tickets for distances up to 199 km.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) commissioned a 600 Mw coal-based thermal power plant of upcoming 2x600 Mw Singareni power project in Adilabad district of Telangana.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) commissioned second 40 MW hydropower generating unit at Teesta low dam hydroelectric project (HEP) in West Bengal.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) launched free 4G Wifi services at Srinagar international airport (J & K).

Bihar Assembly passed Bihar Excise (Amendment) Bill 2016 to enforce ban on country made liquor from 1 April 2016.

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved winding up of National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) as it has fulfilled mandate for which it was constituted. NMCC was established in 2004 as a forum for policy dialogue to sustain growth of manufacturing industr.

Combat operation of Meghalaya police, Hillstorm 3 launched in Garo Hills and West Khasi Hills districts against GNLA (Garo National Liberation Army) militants.

Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat (Karnataka) conducted a honey festival in Mangaluru.

Delhi became first state to launch Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine as a public health programme for school children.

Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) launched Startup India portal (http://startupindia.gov.in) and mobile application.

Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gases laid foundation stone of Country's 1st its of kind Octomax unit at Mathura refinery. It will help in production of high octane gasoline.

Election Commission announced schedule for Assembly polls in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and for UT of Puducherry. In Assam and West Bengal, elections will be held in April while In Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Kerala, elections will be held on May 16. Results will be out on May 19.

First U.S India Workshop on Traditional Medicine held in New Delhi.

First of two 600 MW power generation units at Singareni Thermal Power Plant (STPP) in Adilabad District (Telangana) has been synchronised.

Five healthcare ATMs opened in four states - MP, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. These ATMs would tide over shortage of doctors will also save from the risk of pilferage in free drugs programmes.

Food and public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan launched Depot Online System of Food Corporation of India (FCI) to bring transparency and minimise storage losses of foodgrains.

Goa government classified Feni, country liquor as heritage spirit of the state. It is a distilled brew made from coconut or cashew fruits. It was accorded Geographical indication (GI) tag in 2000.

Government approved 1500 million US dollar project of World Bank to support Swachh Bharat Mission – Gramin (SBM-G).

Government approved amending Sikh Gurdwaras Act 1925 to remove exception given to Sehajdhari Sikhs in 1944 to vote in elections for selecting members of board and the committees constituted under the Act.

Government approved extension of time period of Special Industry Initiative for J&K, Udaan scheme till 2019-20. Udaan provides exposure to youth of Jammu and Kashmir to best of corporate India and corporate India to rich talent pool available in the State.

Government approved implementation of rural housing scheme of Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana- Gramin, for providing assistance for construction of pucca houses to all houseless in dilapidated houses.

Expenditure involved is Rs.81975 crore in a 3 years (2016-17 to 2018-19) for one crore households for construction of pucca house. Delhi and Chandigarh are excluded from scheme.

Cost of houses would be shared between Centre and States Governments in the ratio 60:40 in plain areas and 90:10 for North Eastern and hilly states.

Beneficiary will also be entitled to 90 days of unskilled labour from MGNREGA.

Government will construct 2.95 crore houses in rural areas under its ambitious Housing for All by 2022 scheme.

Assistance of 1.20 lakh to those in plain areas and 1.30 lakh to those in hilly and difficult areas.

Government approved setting up 36th International Geological Congress society under Society Registration Act 1860 for organizing 36th International Geological Congress (IGC) in 2020 and promoting geoscience in Indian subcontinent. Event will be held in NCR, Delhi in March 2-6, 2020 with budget of 52 crores.

Government launched Inclusiveness and Accessibility Index under Sugamya Bharat Abhiyancampaign, in collaboration with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). This Index will help corporates to participate in Accessible India Campaign (AIC) by evaluating their readiness for making workplace accessible for Persons with Disabilities.

Government launched vaccine for Rotavirus vaccine as part of Universal Immunization Programme to prevent child mortaility due to Rotavirus diarrhoea.

Government notified Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016 that includes increasing minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 to 50 microns.

Government will launch 'Setubharatam' project to make all National Highways railway crossing free by 2019 by cost INR 10,200 crores.

Government will organize a ‘Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’ (Village Self Governance Campaign) between 14th April 2016 (Bhimrao Ambedkar’s 125th Birth Anniversary) to 24th April 2016 (Panchayati Raj Day). It aims to generate efforts to increase social harmony across villages, strengthen Panchayati Raj and promote rural development. PM Narendra Modi will inaugurate Gram Uday se Bharat Uday Campaign in Madhya Pradesh.

Haryana Assembly passed Backward Classes Reservation Bill, 2016 -

It will provide reservation in services and admission in educational institutions to backward classes including Jats and five other castes, divided into Block A, Block B and Block C. Jats, Jat Sikhs, Ror, Bishnoi, Tyagi and Mulla/Muslim Jat are included in Block C.

It provides 10 % reservation to these castes for class III and class IV posts and 6% in class 1 and class 2 posts, along with 10 % reservation for admission in educational institutions.

Haryana Government changed name of Mustafabad village in Yamuna Nagar district to Saraswati Nagar (derived from mythological Saraswati River).

Haryana Government launched scheme Adapting Homes for the Differently-abled, under which 6 months pension will be given in advance to such persons for adapting their homes as per their requirement.

Haryana’s New Secretariat Building in Chandigarh has become first building in the country to have an early Earthquake Warning and Security system (onsite).

India IT Major Tata Consultancy Services partnered for enhancing digital experience of participants in London Marathon.

India Post released commemorative stamp on Hindustan Aeronautical Limited (HAL) in recognition of HAL's 75 years of service.

India's Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve included in World Network of Biosphere Reserves of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It was included along with other 19 sites at International Coordinating Council of the Man and the Biosphere (ICCMAB) programme of UNESCO that concluded in Lima (Peru). India now has 10 of its 18 biosphere reserves listed as UNESOC's World Network of Biosphere Reserves.

India's first 75-seater solar powered ferry will come up in tourism spot of Kerala Allepey (the Venice of the East).

India's first self cleaning smart toilets (Around 180) have been installed in Chennai (Tamil Nadu).

India's first state-wide broadband project AP FiberNet launched by Andhra Pradesh government.

Indian Pharmaceutical Firm Glenmark received final approval from US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture and market Frovatriptan Succinate tablets in USA.

Indian Railways appointed Ernst & Young (EY) as consultant to analyze advertising potential in trains and railway stations.

Indian Railways signed agreement with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for using space technology for providing passenger information in all trains.

International Monetary Fund Chief Christine Lagrade visited India to participate in MOF - IMF Meet in Delhi with Theme Advancing Asia: Investing for the Future. She announced that IMF and India will jointly set-up South Asia Regional Training and Technical Assistance Center in Delhi.

J P Nadda, Minister of Health and Family Welfare launched two major Digital initiatives to provide easy access to health services - GIS-enabled HMIS application and self-printing of e-CGHS cards.

Jammu and Kashmir became 9th state to sign MOU with Government under UDAY (Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana), for financial turnaround of State's Power Distribution facilities.

Kachhabali village in Rajsamand district become 1st Liquor Free Vilage in state of Rajasthan.

Karnataka High Court ruled that report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) cannot be sole basis for any liability being caused or for prosecution to be launched.

Karnataka developed mobile application MGNREGA M-platform to help implementation of monitoring Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Lok Sabha passed Aadhaar (Target Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill 2016 as a Money Bill for giving statutory backing for transferring government subsidies and benefits to targeted people by assigning them Aadhaar unique identity numbers.

Under Aadhaar scheme, Biometric data of 99 crore Indians have been collected so far and kept in encrypted and secure form.

Lok Sabha passed Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order (Amendment) Bill 2016 to amend list of Scheduled Castes (SC) from 4 states -

Chhattisgarh - Inclusion of Sais, Sahis, Sarathi, Soot-Sarathi, Thanwar communities

Haryana - Inclusion of Aheria, Aheri, Hari, Heri, Thori, Turi and Rai Sikh communities

Kerala - Inclusion of Peruvannan community.

Exclusion of Bariki and Kummari communities.

Lok Sabha passed Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2016 to make amendments to Enemy Property Act, 1968.

MS Swaminathan Research Foundation signed MOU with Bhubaneswar-based Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) to establish a Research Chair, named after MS Swaminathan (father of Indian Green Revolution).

Madhya Pradesh government announced inclusion of widow marriage under MP's Mukhyamantri Kanya Vivah Yojana.

Maharashtra Cabinet approved Prohibition of Social Boycott Bill, 2016 that aims for prohibition of social boycott of a person / group by groups like Caste Panchayat. After approval of this bill, Maharashtra will become the first Indian State to enact a law against social boycott.

Minister for Health & Family Welfare JP Nadda launched Project Clean Street Food of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). It aims to raise safety standards of foods sold on streets across Delhi.

Minister for Minority Affairs Najma Heptulla launched innovative entrepreneurship and skill development programme of Maulana Azad National Academy for Skills (MANAS). It will use leading celebrities belonging to Minority communities in various skill sets as driving force behind skill skill development projects.

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) released Four-colour Classification Scheme for industries based on their pollution potential. Based on Range of Pollution Index‘, industrial sectors are categorised into 4 colours category -

Red - Severe Pollution with PI score of 60 and above. These include sugar, thermal power plants, paints are under in it.

Orange - High Pollution with PI score of 41 - 59. Includes 83 industries like coal, washeries and automobile servicing.

Green - Low Pollution with PI score of 21 - 40. Includes 63 industries in it.

White - Less Polution with PI score under 20. They are 30 non-polluting industries.

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI). It will survey more than 60000 elderly over 25 years plan and will provide validated data on various issues of the elderly.

Ministry of Tourism and Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI) signed Memorandum of Understanding to promote Sustainable tourism.

Mizoram and Japanese International Cooperative Agency (JICA) signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Capacity Enhancement for Sustainable Agriculture and Irrigation Development.

NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) tied up with Indian School of Business (ISB) Hyderabad as a significant step in ensuring development of management competencies of manpower.

National Food Security Act (NFSA) will be implemented in 10 more states from April 1, 2016. Total number of states implementing NFSA will rise to 21.

National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) gave License Agreement to Kudos Laboratories for commercialization of Ayush-82, an Ayurvedic formulation for prevention and management of diabetes. Ayush-82 was developed by CCRAS (Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences).

One of Mumbai oldest colleges, Wilson College adopted Charni Road Railway station for cleanliness and upkeep as part of Swachch Bharat Abhiyan.

PM Narendra Modi launched Kisan Suvidha mobile application for farmers to provide agricultural relevant basic information quickly. It will provide basic information on market prices, seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, weather and agriculture machinery etc.

PM Narendra Modi selected Nagepur village in Varanasi Constituency (Uttar Pradesh) under Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY).

Parliament passed Carriage by Air (Amendment) Bill 2015 to amend Carriage by Air Act 1972 to empower Union government to revise limits of liability for airlines and compensation as per Montreal Convention that India accepted in 2009. Now Bill will go for Presidential assent as per Article 111 of Constitution.

Parliament passed National Waterways Bill 2015 for conversion of 106 rivers and creeks across India into national transport waterways.

Power Minister Piyush Goyal launched mobile application Vidyut PRAVAH - Electricity, Price Availability and Highlights that can give information related to electricity availability, shortage and pricing on mobile phones.

Power Ministry gave named UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) for LED based Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP). DELP programme was launched in January 2015 for energy conservation by replacing 77 crore incandescent lamps with LED bulbs.

Power generation unit 1 of Kakrapar Atomic Power Station (Gujarat) shut down after leakage of heavy water.

President Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated National conference on ‘Women Legislators: Building Resurgent India’ in New Delhi.

President's Rule has been imposed in Northern State of Uttarakhand.

Pune-based Maharashtra Institute of Technology (MIT) has set up India's first education technology accelerator called Edugild. It will focus on Startups focusing education sector.

Punjab Assembly passed Punjab Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal land (Transfer of Proprietary Right) Bill, 2016 that seeks to provide transfer of proprietary rights back to land owners free of cost from whom land was acquired by Puinjab government for construction of Sutlej Yamuna Link.

Punjab Government notified swine flu (H1N1) under Epidemic Disease Act to prevent spread of disease in Punjab.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu launched Clean My Coach service to allow travelers to get their compartments cleaned by sending SMS or using app / website.

Rajya Sabha passed Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill 2015 to protect interests of consumers and enhance growth of construction sector -

Establishes state level regulatory authorities called Real Estate Regulatory Authorities (RERAs) and tribunals called Real Estate Appellate Tribunals (REAT) to settle disputes.

70% of the amount collected from buyers must be maintained in a separate bank (escrow) account and must only be used for construction of that project.

Real estate contributes nine per cent to the national GDP.

Researchers discovered Sand-eating tadpole species named Micrixalus herrei in Western Ghats. The tadpole belongs to Indian Dancing Frog family, Micrixalidae.

Supreme Court approved Government's guidelines to protect Good Samaritans, who help road accident victims, from being unnecessarily harassed by police or any other authority. These guidelines are based on recommendations of K S Radhakrishnan committee.

Surat railway station is cleanest in country, followed by Rajkot and Bilaspur (Chhattisgarh), as per a survey by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

Telangana Government launched M-Wallet mobile app to facilitate citizens to get digital copies of documents like driving licence and registration certificates.

Telecom Commission approved number 112 as single emergency number for India, similar to 911 of United States (US) and 999 of United Kingdom (UK). From now onwards, Indian citizens in distress will be able to get all emergency services such as police, fire department and ambulance by just dialling 112. It will direct the call to concerned departments immediately for help.

To help farmers in switching to unconventional methods of farming, Gujarat state government will set up country's first university exclusively focusing on organic farming.

Traditional festival of Chapchar Kut of Mizos celebrated across north-eastern state of Mizoram. This spring festival celebrated every year in March after Jhum (shifting agriculture by clearing jungle by burning and cultivating in remnants of burning).

Transport Ministry cancelled a contract with IRB Infrastructure to build a $1.5 billion (10500 Crore) Tunnel of Length 14.8 KM (Zoji La Pass) in Jammu and Kashmir.

Uttar Pradesh Government approved policy for senior citizens. Under this, UP government will set up old age homes and also announced increase in monthly pension from existing 300 to 400 rupees.

Uttar Pradesh launched awareness campaign at school levels to create awareness about conservation of birds (Sparrows).

e-Commerce company Flipkart launched its own advertisement platform in name Brand Story Adswith over 50 leading brands on board. Noted Brands like Yes Bank, L’Oreal, Micromax, Intel, Gillette, Datsun and Sony have signed up with Flipkart to launch their ads campaigns on the platform.

Persons

Actress Sonakshi Sinha become a Guinness World Records title-holder as she along with several other women participated in an initiative to set a record for most people painting their fingernails simultaneously.

Anil Kumar Singh Gayan, Minister of Health of Mauritius visited India.

Britain's Prince Harry visited nepal to mark 200th anniversary of bilateral ties.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal named among world's 50 top leaders by Fortune magazine.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Economy of Luxembourg, Etienne Schneider visited India.

Eminent Shehnai expert Ustad Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan passed away.

Former Lok Sabha Speaker Purno Agitok Sangma passed away.

Former New Zealand cricket captain Martin Crowe passed away.

Guinness World Records confirmed Mr Israel Kristal of Israel as world’s Oldest living man at age of 112 years.

India's noted film archivist and scholar Paramesh Krishnan Nair passed away.

Internet pioneer and e-mail inventor Raymond Tomlinson passed away. He Picked @ symbol for Email addresses.

Kerala's noted Malayalam actor V D Rajappan passed away.

Mother Teresa, a Roman Catholic religious sister and missionary will be elevated to Sainthood (will be made a saint of Roman Catholic Church) on September 4, 2016.

As per rules, being recognized as beatification (blessed) requires one miracle while Canonization (sainthood) requires two miracles.

For Mother Teresa, she was beatified in 2003 by then late Pope John Paul. Now, Pope Francis has approved recognising a second miracle for Mother Teresa’s intercession with God that involved healing of a man who was suffering from a deadly brain disease.

Noted American Actor George Kennedy passed away.

Noted American mathematician and Nobel Prize-winner Lloyd Stowell Shapley passed away.

Noted Brazil musician Nana Vasconcelos passed away.

Noted British author and art historian Anita Brookner passed away. She won Man Booker Prize in 1984 for her novel Hotel du Lac and was bestselling author with around 25 books.

Noted British musician (Rock) Keith Emerson passed away.

Noted Dutch football player Johan Cruyff passed away.

Noted Malayalam actor Kalabhavan Mani passed away.

Noted UK Television magician Paul Daniels passed away.

Noted US actor Garry Shandling passed away.

Noted USA writer Jim Harrison passed away, best known for his 1979 novel Legends of the Fall.

Noted music producer George Henry Martin (UK) passed away.

Noted singer P. Susheela Mohan created world record for singing highest number of songs. Guinness Book of World Records and Asia Book of Records credited her for singing record 17,695 songs in 12 Indian languages.

Oscar winning Noted USA actress Patty Duke passed away.

RK Dhowan, Chief of Naval Staff Visited United Kingdom.

Saudi Arab Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir visited India.

Secretary General of Geneva (Switzerland) Based World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Petteri Taalas visited India.

Suryassangyini Chaudhary become youngest girl to climb 16,300 feet high Mt. Kangchenjunga base camp in Sikkim, at age of 6 years.

UP's Pallavi Fauzdar made a record in Limca Book by becoming first solo woman to ride across Mana Pass in Uttarakhand. She droove her way to altitude of 5,638 m (18,497 ft) above sea level, on border between India and Tibet.

Science

A new frog species that lives in clean mountain brooks and produces a special sound during mating season has been found in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, named Leptolalax tengchongensis (Asian litter frog).

An unmanned spacecraft ExoMars 2016 launched jointly by Europe and Russia to search for biosignatures on Mars. It was launched on a Proton-M rocket. ExoMars 2016 is first of a two-phase of ExoMars (Exobiology on Mars) program.

British astronomers discovered largest sample cluster of 9 monster stars named as R136 using NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope.

Department of heavy industry approved Himachal Road Transport Corporation and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority to introduce zero-emission retrofitted electric buses.

Government announced that out of 96,000 animal species found in India, more than 50 animals have been assessed as critically endangered (CR) and 310 as endangered (EN).

Health Minister JP Nadda launched Cartridge Based Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (CBNAAT) machines for quick diagnosis of Tuberculosis (within two hours).

Health and Family Welfare Ministry launched new anti-TB (Tuberculosis) drug Bedaquiline.

India Meteorology Department deployed indigenously developed Drishti, an instrument that will provide real time visibility information to pilots.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) installed Gadanki Ionospheric Radar Interferometer (GIRI) Radar System at National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (Andhra Pradesh). Primary objective is to Carry out unattended observations for studying forcing from sun like variation in solar flare and solar flux.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launhed Sixth of Seven Satellites of India's navigation satellite system IRNSS-1F (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System). Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C32 carrying 1,425kg satellite lifted off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch record number of 22 satellites in a single mission in May 2016, Polar rocket PSLV C34. It will carry India’s Cartosat 2C along with 21 other satellites from other countries including US, Canada, Indonesia and Germany. Earlier in 2008, ISRO had sent ten satellites into orbit in a single mission. US's NASA holds current world record for sending highest number of satellites in single launch when it launched 29 satellites in a single launch in 2013.

Indian scientists claimed to have developed herbal medicine against mosquito borne dengue fever using alcoholic extract of Cissampelos pariera Linn (Cipa extract) derived from velvetleaf, a species of flowering plant.

Japanese researchers successfully isolated a bacterium species Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6 that is capable of breaking down plastic polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyester.

Microsoft launched artificial intelligence (AI)-powered bot Tay on Twitter, for a playful chat with people.

NASA Invited India to jointly explore Mars and send Indian Astranauts to Mars in Joint Mission. Director of Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA, Charles Elachi said that India and US could jointly explore Mars.

NASA's Expedition 46 Commander Scott Kelly and his Russian counterpart Mikhail Kornienko returned to Earth After historic 340-day stay at International Space Station.

Project Mausam of Ministry of Culture is implemented by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for exploring Indian Ocean world collating archaeological and historical research. It documents diversity of Indian Ocean from East Africa to Southeast Asian archipelago.

Researchers discovered new species of burrowing snake named Melanophidium Khairei orKhaire’s Black Shieldtail in Northwestern Ghats.

Researchers from Purdue University in Indiana in United States revealed first 3D map of the Zika virus structure.

Scientists at Lucknow based Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) found that mint plant has medicinal values that can cure cancer.

Year 2014 recorded highest anthropogenic carbon released in past 6.6 crore years, as per a study at University of Hawaii. Current carbon emissions are mainly from burning fossil fuels, amounting 10 billion tonnes a year. At this pace, temperatures will rise by up to 4.8 degrees Celsius by 2100. It may cause floods, droughts and more powerful storms.

Sports

17th edition of FIFA under-17 World Cup football tournament 2017 will be hosted by India. It will be first time India will host an international football competition.

2016 All England Super Series Badminton Championships -

Men's Singles - Lin Dan (China) won by defeating Tian Houwei (China)

Women’s singles - Nozomi Okuhara (Japan) won by defeating Wang Shixian (China)

Men’s Doubles - Russian pair Vladimir Ivanov and Ivan Sozonov won by defeating Japanese pair Hiroyuki Endo and Kenichi Hayakawa.

Women’s Doubles - Japanese pair Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka Takahashi won by defeating Chinese pair Tang Yuanting and Yu Yang

Mixed Doubles - Indonesian Praveen Jordan and Debby Susanto defeated Denmark's Joachim Fischer Nielsen and Christinna Pedersen

2016 Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold badminton tournament -

Men's Singles - HS Prannoy (India)

Women’s Single - He Bingjiao (China)

Men’s Doubles - Kim Astrup and Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (Denmark)

Women’s Doubles - Shizuka Matsuo and Mami Naito (Japan)

9th International Abilympics (IA) Games started at Bordeaux, France. Abilympics, coined from ‘Olympics of abilities’ of persons with disabilities, is a global work skills competition held every four years.

Armaan Ebrahim won 2015 FMSCI Motorsports Man of the Year Trophy by Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India.

Australian cricketer Shane Watson announced retirement from all forms of International Cricket after end ongoing ICC World Twenty20 2016.

Australian golfer Adam Scott won 2016 WGC-Cadillac Championship at Florida (USA).

Basant Bahadur Singh Rana won gold in men’s 50km race walk event in 3rd edition of National Race Walking Championships in Jaipur.

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) entered into 4 year partnership with Hyundai Motors as an associate sponsor for all international matches at home.

Delhi won 20th Lloyd Business Today Pro-Am of Champions golf tournament.

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) won 3 international awards for 2015 by Airports Council International (ACI) with score of 4.96 / 5. Awards are - Number one airport for consecutive second year in 25 to 40 Million Passengers Per Annum (MPPA) category, Best airport by size & region Asia Pacific and Second best airport by region (Asia Pacific).

Google DeepMind's Go-playing Artificial Intelligence AlphaGo defeated South Korea's top player Lee Se-dol.

Gurmeet Singh became first Indian athlete to win gold medal in Asian 20 Kilometer (km) Race Walk Championships in Japan.

India won 2016 Asia Cup T20 Cricket trophy for 6th time after beating Bangladesh. Man of the series - Sabbir Rahman (Bangladesh). Most runs - Sabbir Rahman (176) Bangladesh. Most wickets - Al-Amin Hossain (11) (Bangladesh).

Indian Golfer Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia won 2016 Hero Indian Open in New Delhi.

Indian boxer Vijender Singh won his fourth successive knockout win in professional boxing circuit, beating Hungary’s Alexander Horvath in under three rounds in Liverpool.

Indian men's and women's team won gold at Second Division of World Team Table Tennis Championship held in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia).

Indian shooter Jitu Rai won Gold in 50m Pistol Men final event at International Shooting Sports Federation (ISSF) World Cup held in Bangkok (Thialand).

International Cricket Council suspended Bangladesh bowlers Taskin Ahmed and Arafat Sunny illegal bowling action.

International Hockey Federation promoted Hockey India national-level umpire Nepoleon Singh as International Outdoor Umpire.

Mohamad Al-Bacha from Denmark won 2016 FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) in USA. He He defeated Sean Allen from England.

FIFA Interactive World Cup (FIWC) annual international competition of football video games is held with partnership from EA Sports and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.

Mumbai under-23 team won Col CK Nayudu cricket Trophy 2015-16 by defeating Madhya Pradesh.

Mumbai won Ranji Cricket Trophy for 41st time, beating saurashtra.

National Special Olympic for special children organized in Shimla (Himachal Pradesh). winners will participate in world winter games in Austria from 14th to 25th March, 2016.

Nico Rosberg (Germany) won 2016 Formula One Rolex Australian Grand Prix.

2016 Formula One season -

Total 19 Grand Prix Races to be organized across the world in 2016. Calendar is -

Grand Prix Date Winner

Australia 20 March Nico Rosberg (Germany)

Baharain 3 April

China 17 April

Russia 1 April

Spain 15 May

Monaco 29 May

Canada 12 June

Europe 19 June

Austria 3 July

Britain 10 July

Hungary 24 July

Germany 31 July

Belgium 28 August

Italy 4 September

Singapore 18 September

Malaysia 2 October

Japan 9 October

USA 23 October

Mexico 30 October

Brazil 13 November

Abu Dhabi 27 November

Novak Djokovic (Serbia) and Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) won men's and women’s singles titles of BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells Tennis Garden (Southern California). Tournament is also known as Indian Wells Open.

Patna Pirates won 3rd season of Star Sports Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) by defeating U Mumba.

PepsiCo became BCCI's official associate sponsor for all international matches in India for 4 years.

Rahul Sachdev won first All India Open Invitational Snooker Championship 2016 at Aurangabad (Maharashtra).

Rest of India won Irani Cup Cricket 2015-16 by defeating Mumbai.

Russia's Sergey Karjakin won FIDE World Chess Candidates Tournament by defeating American Fabiano Caruana.

Russian Tennis player Maria Sharapova provisionally suspended after failed drugs test at Australian Open.

Services won 70th Santosh Trophy Football Championships 2016 by defeating hosts Maharashtra.

Sri Lankan Cricket Board constituted new National Cricket Selection Panel headed by Arvinda de Silva.

United Kingdom Anti-Doping (UKAD) is granted role of organising a worldwide fight against performance-enhancing drugs in the run-up to 2016 Olympic Games in Rio (Brazil).

United Nations suspended Russian tennis player Maria Sharapova as Goodwill Ambassador after she was tested positive on doping allegations.

Yogeshwar Dutt won Gold in Asian Olympic Qualification tournament at Astana (Kazakhstan). Hardeep Singh won Silver Medal.

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Eligibility	Professionals with 10 years in financial services or promoter group with 5 year track record	Card Issuers, Finance Companies, Business Correspondents, Telecom Companies, Retailers etc.
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Grand Prix	Date	Winner
Australia	20 March	Nico Rosberg (Germany)
Baharain	3 April
China	17 April
Russia	1 April
Spain	15 May
Monaco	29 May
Canada	12 June
Europe	19 June
Austria	3 July
Britain	10 July
Hungary	24 July
Germany	31 July
Belgium	28 August
Italy	4 September
Singapore	18 September
Malaysia	2 October
Japan	9 October
USA	23 October
Mexico	30 October
Brazil	13 November
Abu Dhabi	27 November